fall apple breakfast crisp

If you've been reading, you'll remember when I said Smitten's apricot breakfast crisp recipe I made while in Vermont was revolutionary. It's the perfect combination of granola crunch, lightly sweetened with the natural sweetness of fruit. Topped with a large spoonful of yogurt - pure wonderfulness.

During that trip we also went on an old orchard apple foraging spree. It seemed like a great idea at the time, but back in reality I was left with a huge bag of tiny apples. Unfortunately, these aren't the kind of apples I'd like to sink my teeth into daily. Much much too tart. I tried peeling them and almost peeled my finger off. Thankfully, I've discovered they bake up beautifully with the skin on!

I remembered The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook had included a side note that mentioned other fruits like apples work well  in the crisp. So I set out to tweak the recipe to fit our forlorn little apple friends and some other pantry staples. And viola! A crisp with all the cozy flavors of fall perfect for a cool morning. It's filling and satisfying without the heaviness that you get from eating too many pancakes for breakfast.

Oh you should know that after I made my crisp, I discovered that Smitten has her own breakfast apple granola crisp recipe. I haven't tried that version yet, but I thought you'd like to know your options :)

Fall Apple Breakfast Crisp
Adapted from The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook
For the fruit on the bottom:
1 lb of apples
Squirt of fresh lemon juice (just enough to toss the cut apples in)
2 tablespoons natural or regular sugar
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
Dash of nutmeg
Dash of cinnamon
1/4 cup golden raisins

For the crumble topping:
4 tablespoon of butter, melted
1/3 cup natural sugar
1/2 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
Pinch of salt
3 tablespoons chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the tiny apples into quarters, discarding the core. Toss apples in lemon juice in a small 1 qt baking dish or shallow pie plate. Mix in sugar, flour, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Spread apple mixture so it evenly coats the bottom of the dish. Sprinkle raisins over the apples. Edited 10/17/2013: I made this recipe again yesterday and thought I should mention that if you choose to add the raisins make sure they are covered by the crumble topping otherwise they will darken and burn. 

Prepare the topping by melting the butter. Mix in sugar first, then oats. Followed by flour, salt, and pecans. Spread the crumbly mixture over the apples. Bake for 25 minutes then cover with foil, so the topping doesn't get too dark. Continue baking for another 15-20 minutes.

I prefer mine served slightly warm with a dollop of homemade yogurt on top sprinkled with cinnamon. Oh what a beautiful morning it is when it begins with a breakfast crisp. Or warm it up for a delicious lunchtime treat. Mmmmm, bring on those flavors of fall!

Wondering what I did with the rest of my mini apples? I made maple cinnamon applesauce, of course!