This healthy apple crisp is lightly sweetened with maple syrup and features a crunchy oatmeal topping. This recipe is sure to be a fall family favorite!

Riddle me this — what do you do when you have four big bags of fresh apples sitting in your kitchen after a fun day of apple picking?! You make a homemade apple crisp!

The apples are baked to caramel-y perfection while the oatmeal topping gives the crisp a crunchy texture. I love the apples, but the oatmeal pecan topping is totally what makes the dish, IMO!

What Makes This Apple Crisp Healthy?

The great thing about this particular apple crisp is that it’s relatively healthy in comparison to traditional recipes…

• I swapped traditional brown sugar for coconut sugar
• I used coconut oil instead of butter
• I used almond flour instead of traditional all-purpose flour
• I used hearty rolled oats as the base of the crisp topping

What is The Different Between Apple Crisp and Apple Crumble?

Depending on where you live, apple crisp and apple crumble may mean the same thing! In the United States, they are slightly different dishes. Apple crisp is baked apples topped with a mixture of oats, nuts, sugar and spices. Apple crumble is also baked apples but is topped with more of a streusel mixture of flour, sugar and butter. No matter what you call it, they’re both delicious!

Ingredients Needed

Filling

• apples – the star of the show here! I like using a combination of tart and sweet apples. My favorite varieties are Pink Lady and Honeycrisp apples!
• arrowroot powder – helps thicken the apple mixture. Cornstarch works as well.
• maple syrup – just a little bit of added natural sweetness for the apple mixture.
• lemon juice – helps prevent the apples from browning and brings out the flavors in the dish!
• seasonings and spices – cinnamon, nutmeg and sea salt.

Crumble Topping

• coconut sugar – brown sugar works as well!
• old-fashioned rolled oats – oats are naturally gluten-free but are often cross-contaminated during processing, so if you need this crisp to be gluten-free, make sure you look for oats that say “gluten-free” on the package. I like using Bob’s Red Mill gluten free old fashioned rolled oats.
• almond flour – we’re using almond flour to keep this recipe gluten-free.
• chopped nuts – I prefer using pecans or walnuts, but you can definitely sub in another nut like almonds. To make the topping nut-free, swap the pecans with additional oats.
• coconut oil – keep the coconut oil in solid form to help make the topping more crumb-like.

How to Make

Make topping: In a medium bowl combine the sugar, rolled oats, almond flour and nuts. Add butter or coconut oil and combine until topping is crumb-like. Set aside.

Make filling: Add apple slices to a large bowl with maple syrup, lemon juice, arrowroot powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Gently toss until all apple slices are coated.

Top: Transfer apple mixture to greased 8×8 square baking pan or a 9-inch round pie pan. Sprinkle crisp topping over apple mixture.

Bake: Place baking dish in preheated oven and bake for 45-50 minutes or until the apple filling is bubbly and the top is golden brown. Check the crisp around 30 minutes in. If the crisp seems to be browning too quickly, cover with foil for the remaining 15-20 minutes.

Cool and serve: Cool for 5-10 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped topping.

Substitutions & Notes

• Almond flour: I haven’t tested this crisp with a different flour, but I have a feeling that oat flour, all-purpose flour or gluten-free all-purpose flour will work just fine for the topping. If you try it, please let me know in the comments.
• Rolled oats: You can’t substitute the rolled oats for steel cut oats, but quick oats should work.
• Arrowroot powder: Cornstarch will work as a substitute.
• Nuts: Feel free to use your favorite nut in place of the walnuts or pecans. Almonds would be a nice option.
• Oil: You can swap the coconut oil with vegan butter or regular butter if you don’t need this recipe to be vegan.
• Maple syrup: Any liquid sweetener like honey or agave will work as a substitute.
• Coconut sugar: Feel free to use brown sugar instead if that’s what you have on hand.
• Nut-free: If you need this recipe to be nut-free just swap the nuts for additional oats and the almond flour for all-purpose flour or oat flour.
• Low-sugar: If you’d like for the crisp to be less sweet, feel free to cut the sugar back to 1/2 -3/4 cup instead of 1 cup!
• Other fruit: If you’d like to swap the apples with another fruit pears would be a good substitute. You could also make this peach crisp or blueberry crumble instead!

What Are The Best Apples to Use For Apple Crisp?

Not all apples are great for baking. When choosing apples for baking you want apples that are firm and keep their structure under heat and don’t turn into mush after baking. The crisp and firm Granny Smith and Honeycrisp varieties are the most popular when it comes to baking. Pink Lady, Golden Delicious, Braeburn, Fuji, Cortland and Jonagold are also great options. Feel free to use just one variety or use an assortment of varieties for an added depth of flavor. I like to use both sweet and tart apples in this crisp!

How to Serve Apple Crisp

Served warm, this apple crisp is absolutely delicious on its own, but if you really want the full experience I recommend serving it with some toppings. Here are some ideas:

• ice cream – I love eating it with Halo Top Creamery vanilla ice cream, which is a low cal/low sugar ice cream that actually tastes pretty darn good!
• yogurt – add creaminess and protein by adding yogurt as a topping! Pro tip: whip the yogurt in a food processor for a light and airy texture.
• whipped cream – can’t go wrong with classic whipped cream!
• coconut whip – looking for a dairy-free option? I love topping this apple crisp with coconut whipped cream!
• caramel sauce – want more caramel-y flavor? Drizzle my date caramel sauce over top!

Can You Make This Crisp Ahead of Time?

Yes, you can totally make this apple crisp recipe ahead of time, which is perfect if you’re serving it for Thanksgiving dessert and have a ton of other dishes to make. There are a couple of options that work really well.

OPTION 1: BAKE AND THEN REHEAT BEFORE SERVING

Prepare your crisp as the recipe suggests. Once baked, let it cool, cover the baking dish and place it in the fridge. You can do this 1-2 days in advance. When ready to serve, take your crisp out from the fridge, cover with foil and reheat in a 350°F oven for about 20 minutes.

OPTION 2: PREP AS MUCH AS YOU CAN WITHOUT BAKING

Simply prepare your crisp as the recipe suggests without baking it. Cover your dish with foil, place it in the fridge and then bake it as directed below before you’re ready to serve.

How to Store Leftovers

At room temperature: Leftovers will store well at room temperature for about 2 days.

In the fridge: For longer storage, store this apple crisp in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

In the freezer: I don’t recommend freezing leftovers because I don’t think the crisp topping will hold up.

Reheating: This crisp is delicious warm, at room temperature or cold straight from the fridge, but if you want to reheat leftovers I recommend reheating it in the oven or a toaster oven for the best results. The microwave will work for reheating, but it will, but it will make the crumble topping soggy and not as crisp!

Apple Crisp FAQ’s

Looking For More Apple Recipes?

• Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal
• Vegan Apple Bread
• Apple Dutch Baby
• Healthy Apple Crumble Bars
• Baked Apple Cider Donuts
• Apple Oatmeal Bars
• Healthy Apple Pancakes
• Apple Cinnamon Muffins
• Baked Apples
• Apple Cake
• Healthy Dutch Apple Pie
• 30+ Healthy Apple Recipes

Try These Popular Healthy Desserts

• Baked Pears
• Peach Crisp
• Blueberry Crumble
• No Bake Pumpkin Pie Bars
• Pavlova
• Soft Pumpkin Cookies
• Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies
• Chocolate Banana Ice Cream
• Healthy Lemon Bars

Be sure to check out all of my apple recipes as well as the full collection of dessert recipes here on EBF!