Apple Blueberry Crisp

At a glance

What stands out: The sweet tart combination of apples and berries in this apple blueberry crisp makes an outstanding dessert. Classic fruit crisps are straightforward to mix, versatile, and so rich. Many fruits, fresh or frozen, can be turned into a crisp.

How long it takes: 15 minutes to prep, and 50 minutes in the oven
Equipment you’ll need: baking dish, large bowl, oven
Servings: 6

Apple Crisp, plus!

Apple crisp is one of our favorite desserts. Our grandma always used to make it for our birthday (along with pot roast!). There’s just something about the warm apples and crunchy cinnamon topping that makes us feel happy all over. Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream that slowly melts into the warm crisp, and you’ve pretty much described bliss.

Today, we're bringing you apple crisp dessert with a little riff. We've added blueberries to the mix. Blueberries add a bit of tartness, lots of flavor, and gorgeous color.

So enjoy! If you’re not a fan of blueberries, be sure to try our apple crisp with ginger or one of the other ideas listed below.

Homestyle apple blueberry crisp

This is a basic fruit crisp recipe that is easily adaptable. We've been making it for years. Apples and blueberries are good friends and make a scrumptious crisp, but please feel free to use whatever combination of fruit you have. Fresh or frozen, it doesn’t matter. Other suggestions are peaches, cherries, raspberries, blackberries, or plums.

This dessert can be made in whatever oven-safe dish you have. Bake your crisp in a 8 or 9 inch square baking dish, or whatever you have that’s comparable, whether it’s square, rectangular, oval, or even a round pie dish. It’s fun to bake and serve in a cast iron skillet too. If you happen to have one of those darling small skillets that serve two, cut the recipe in half.

Cast Iron Skillets

Looking for a fun way to bake and serve your crisp? Besides being attractive, a cast iron skillet will keep the crisp warm until you’re ready to serve it. They are handy for warm appetizers, too.

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What goes in

• Apples: You’ll need about four small apples. (Keep reading to find out which type of apples to use.) Peel the apples, cut them into quarters, remove the core, and slice the quarters into thin slices.
• Blueberries: Either fresh or frozen blueberries work fine in a crisp. It isn’t necessary (or desirable) to thaw the berries first if they are frozen.
• All-Purpose Flour: Flour is used to thicken the fruit mixture and as an ingredient in the topping.
• Granulated White Sugar: Just a small amount of white sugar is mixed in with the fruit. Most of the sweetness in this dessert is found in the topping, and of course, the natural sugars in the fruit.
• Brown Sugar: Either dark or light brown sugar is fine. Brown sugar gives almost a caramel flavor to the topping. Be sure you pack the brown sugar firmly into the measuring cup for an accurate measurement.
• Butter: Always use unsalted butter for baking, unless directed otherwise. The butter should be at room temperature so it is soft enough to blend in.
• Oats: Rolled oats are essential to crisps. Choose old-fashioned or speedy oats. Steel cut oats or instant oatmeal won’t work.
• Nutmeg and Cinnamon: This spice duo is evenly suited for baked fruit desserts. They add a sweet, warm flavor that is incomparable. Try buying whole nutmeg and grate it with a fine grater. The taste is much more potent than ground nutmeg.

How it comes together

Get ready. Go ahead and get the oven preheating. It won’t take you long to get the crisp ready to bake. Find the baking dish you want to use and give it a light misting of nonstick spray.

Prep the fruit. In a large bowl, lightly toss the sliced apples and blueberries with a couple tablespoons each of flour and sugar. Pile the fruit in the prepared baking dish, arranging it so it’s fairly even. If you notice that the blueberries are congregating in one corner, make sure you divvy them up a bit.

Make the topping. In the same bowl you used for the fruit, combine the topping ingredients: flour, brown sugar, oats, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add the softened butter, and cut it into the dry ingredients. You can use a pastry cutter, a fork, your fingers, or a food processor to do this. The mixture should be pretty well combined and will be chunky. If you press a bit between your fingers, it should clump together.

Add it to the fruit. Sprinkle the topping evenly on top of the fruit. If you like large clumps of crispy topping, press some of it between your fingers to form chunks.

Bake. The crisp will need about 50 minutes in the oven. Crisps aren’t overly fussy about cooking time. If you happen to have something else in the oven that needs to cook at a lower temperature, the crisp will be fine. You’ll just have to bake it a bit longer.

Tips For A standby Fruit Crisp

Choose a standby apples. Not all apples are created equal. Some are better for eating fresh; some make great applesauce. There are lots of varieties that are good for baking but here’s a short list to choose from: Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, Braeburn, Granny Smith, or Cortland. These apples will get soft and juicy but retain their shape when baked.
That being said, if you have a favorite apple, feel free to use it. There are lots of differing opinions on baking apples although it seems there is universal disapproval of Red Rich (and we agree), so we would stay away from that one.

Bake the crisp long enough. How can you tell when a crisp is done? The topping should be golden brown and you should see juices bubbling up here and there throughout the filling. It’s pretty difficult to overbake a crisp; in fact, it’s better to overbake it than underbake it.

Add a topping to the baked crisp. Serve apple blueberry crisp warm, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. A dollop of plain or sweetened yogurt is good, too, or even a dab of sour cream.

Crisp, Crumble, or Cobbler?

Do all baked fruit desserts begin with the letter “C”?! You may be wondering how they differ from each other. It’s all in the topping; the fruit base is similar. Crisps usually contain oats in the topping. Crumbles are more streusel-like, with more flour but no oats. Either may have added nuts such as pecans or walnuts. Cobblers have a biscuit-like topping.

Ways to change it

• Use different fruit. If you’re not a fan of blueberries, make your crisp withall apples (try our apple crisp with ginger). Instead of blueberries, you could substitute tart cherries, raspberries, or strawberries. In fact, feel free to mix and match the fruit. Plums, pears, peaches, or nectarines are good substitutions for apples. Frozen fruit is evenly acceptable. We also love strawberry rhubarb crisp!
• Add nuts. Pecans or walnuts can be added to the topping before baking.
• Make a double batch. Expecting a big crowd? Use a large baking dish and doublethe recipe. Increase baking time if necessary.
• Make extra topping. If you love the crisp topping, it’s okay to make a batch and a half or even a double batch of the topping mixture and pile it on. We often do that!
• Dress it up. Top your apple blueberry crisp with vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of from-scratch caramel sauce (or bourbon caramel sauce!).

Make-Ahead Ideas

Prepare the crisp a day in advance, and refrigerated unbaked. Don’t worry if the apples discolor a bit. That’s normal and will not affect the end product at all.

Unbaked fruit crisps can also be frozen. Double wrap in foil, label, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before baking.

To bake, simply take the dish out of the refrigerator for a half hour while the oven preheats, uncover it, and bake as directed.

Keeping leftovers

Store: Baked apple blueberry crisp is best eaten the first day. Leftover crisp has a tendency to get juicier, and the topping will lose its crispness. If you have leftover crisp, it can be stored at room temperature for a day or two, or refrigerated for up to three days. Be sure the crisp is totally cool before covering it with plastic wrap or foil.

Reheat: Leftover apple crisp can be eaten at room temperature or lightly reheated. To reheat, single portions can be warmed in the microwave. Be careful, because it seems to heat quickly. Use 50% power and heat in 15 second increments. For a larger amount of leftover apple crisp, heat in a 325°F oven until it’s warm.

Leftover Love

Apple blueberry crisp breakfast bowl: Top leftover crisp with a big dollop of plain Greek yogurt. It’s one of our favorite breakfasts. With lots of fruit and oats, and the added yogurt, it’s a fairly lighter way to start your day.

• Yield: 6
• Prep: 15 minutes
• Cook: 50 minutes
• Total: 1 hour 5 minutes

Ingredients

Filling:

• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 3 cups sliced apples, peeled, about 4 small apples (see note)
• 2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen

Topping:

• ⅔ cup packed brown sugar
• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• ½ cup rolled oats (old fashioned or quick)
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¾ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
• ⅓ cup unsalted butter, softened

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350°F and lightly spray 8 x 8 inch baking dish with nonstick spray (see note).
2. In large bowl, mix together 2 tablespoons flour and 2 tablespoons sugar. Add apples and blueberries and toss lightly to coat. Spread fruit evenly in baking dish.
3. Using the same bowl, combine topping ingredients: brown sugar, ½ cup flour, oats, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Cut in butter using a fork or a pastry cutter until combined. The mixture should stick together if you press it with your fingertips.
4. Sprinkle this mixture on top of fruit, squeezing some between your fingertips if you like large clumps on the crisp.
5. Bake 50 to 55 minutes, or until apples are soft, fruit is bubbling, and crisp is browned on top..
6. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream, if desired.

Notes

Baking dish: Any baking dish that is of comparable size, or a small cast iron skillet, can be used.

Apples: Choose a good baking apple such as Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, Braeburn, Granny Smith, or Cortland.

Feel free to use a different fruit. Use all apples, or all blueberries. Instead of blueberries, try cherries, raspberries, or strawberries. Instead of apples, try pears, plums (unpeeled), peaches or nectarines. Fresh or frozen fruit may be used.