Apple Crumble (with Dried Apricots, Brown Sugar, and Walnuts)

What You Will Need

To make this apple crumble, you will need the following ingredients:

• Granny Smith Apples – 8 medium apples (3lb/1.3 kg)
• Dried Apricots – 1 cup, roughly chopped, measured before chopping
• Cinnamon – 1 tsp cinnamon
• Lemon – zest from one lemon and juice from one lemon (about 2 tablespoons)
• Cornstarch – 1 tbsp cornstarch, to thicken the apple filling
• Brown Sugar – 1 cup dark brown sugar
• Flour – 1 cup of all-purpose flour (120 grams)
• Butter – 1 stick unsalted butter (115 grams), grated or cut into small pieces
• Walnuts – 1 cup roughly chopped walnuts or pecans, measured after chopping (about 115 grams)
• Salt – a pinch of salt
• Ice Cream (to serve) – vanilla ice cream, to serve with the crumble

Ingredient Notes:

• Apples – Granny Smith apples are essential for their tart flavor. If you can’t get Granny Smith apples, go for Pink Lady or Honeycrisp apples, and reduce the sugar in the apple filling to 1/4 cup instead of 1/2 cup.
• Cornstarch – the cornstarch helps thicken the apple syrup while baking. If you don’t have cornstarch, add 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour to help thicken the filling.
• Brown sugar – I prefer dark brown sugar for its high percentage of molasses, which adds more caramel notes to the crumble. You can use light brown sugar or regular white sugar; it will just have less intense caramel flavor.
• Walnuts – you can also use pecans, hazelnuts, macadamia, or almonds.

Step 1. Peel and chop the apples. To a large mixing bowl, add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. Peel, halve, and core the apples. Chop them (into about 1/2-inch-wide pieces), adding them to the mixing bowl with lemon juice.

Note: The lemon juice keeps them from browning.

Step 2. Make the apple filling. To the mixing bowl with the chopped apples add half the lemon zest, the chopped dried apricots, half the cinnamon, the cornstarch, and half the brown sugar. Transfer to a baking dish.

Note: I used a 12-inch by 9-inch glass baking dish but you can use other dishes (simply adjust the baking time).

Step 3. Make the topping. First, combine the butter (grated or chopped into small pieces) with the flour, remaining lemon zest, and remaining sugar, rubbing the mixture until you have a small pea-size breadcrumb-like texture. Fold in the chopped nuts. Add the crumb on top of the apple filling evenly.

Note: You can also mix this in a food processor if you’d prefer.

Step 4. Bake the apple crumble. Preheat the oven to 360°F (180°C). Bake the crumble for about 40-45 minutes until the apples are tender, the liquid is bubbling on the edges, and the topping is golden-brown. Let the crumble rest for about 15 minutes. Resting the crumble helps thicken the filling.

Note: Don’t worry if the topping doesn’t seem crisp enough when you take it out of the oven. Once it rests for 15 minutes, it will be crispier.

Step 5. Serve with vanilla ice cream. Add the crumble into serving bowls or ramekins and top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. If someone wants a bigger portions, bowls are a great choice, as shown below.

If you want a smaller portion, ramekins like these ones can work well.

More Dessert Ideas

If you have the family around often, or like to host for holidays, it’s always good to have a few go-to desserts to serve. Some of my favorites include this indulgent chocolate mousse, this easy three-ingredient strawberry mouse, this tiramisu, this lemon posset, or this mixed berry and ricotta salad.

Recipe Card

Apple Crumble

No ratings yet

Print Pin Rate

Course: Desserts

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 8 -12 servings

Ingredients

• 8 medium Granny Smith apples 3lb/1.3 kg
• 1 cup dried apricots roughly chopped, measured before chopping
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• zest from one lemon
• 2 tbsp lemon juice juice from one lemon
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 cup of all-purpose flour 120 grams
• 1 stick unsalted butter 115 grams, grated or cut into small pieces
• 1 cup roughly chopped walnuts measured after chopping (about 115 grams)
• a pinch of salt
• vanilla ice cream to serve with the crumble

Instructions

• Peel and chop the apples. To a large mixing bowl, add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. Peel, halve, and core the apples. Chop them (into about 1/2-inch-wide pieces), adding them to the mixing bowl with lemon juice.
• Make the apple filling. To the mixing bowl with the chopped apples, add half the lemon zest, the chopped dried apricots, half the cinnamon (½ tsp), the cornstarch (1 tbsp), and half the brown sugar (½ cup). Transfer to a 12-inch by 9-inch glass baking dish.
• Make the topping. First, combine the butter (grated or chopped into small pieces) with the flour, remaining lemon zest, and remaining sugar (½ cup), rubbing the mixture until you have a small pea-size breadcrumb-like texture. Fold in the chopped nuts. Add the crumb on top of the apple filling evenly.
• Bake the apple crumble. Preheat the oven to 360°F (180°C). Bake the crumble for about 40-45 minutes until the apples are tender, the liquid is bubbling on the edges, and the topping is golden-brown. Let the crumble rest for about 15 minutes.
• Serve with vanilla ice cream. Add the crumble into serving bowls or ramekins and top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Notes

• Granny Smith apples are essential for their tart flavor. If you can’t get Granny Smith apples, go for Pink Lady or Honeycrisp apples, and reduce the sugar in the apple filling to 1/4 cup instead of 1/2 cup.
• Cornstarch – the cornstarch helps thicken the apple syrup while baking. If you don’t have cornstarch, add 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour to help thicken the filling.
• Brown sugar – I prefer dark brown sugar for its high percentage of molasses, which adds more caramel notes to the crumble. You can use light brown sugar or regular white sugar; it will just have less intense caramel flavor.
• Walnuts – you can also use pecans, hazelnuts, macadamia, or almonds.