Mrs. Denis (Deborah) Fry’s Apple Crisp

The plan was to make an apple pie: for some reason the idea of making an apple pie from scratch — crust and all — seemed like a good way to really put the new kitchen (and my cooking skills) through its paces. I had the recipe out and was arranging the ingredients on the counter when I realized I don’t own a pie pan. That must be remedied, but I’d already promised Richard something sweet that evening. I flipped through the Desserts section, looking for a substitute that I had the ingredients for, and could put together fairly easily (for some reason my willingness to really work on dessert had evaporated with the mythical pie pan). I came across Apple Crisp: a special treat from my childhood, when it was served warm from the oven, in a bowl, half covered in milk.

Apple Crisp with Milk, CC BY-NC-SA, Richard Kim

Putting this together is embarrassingly easy: the hardest part is peeling and slicing the apples. While the recipe is silent on the type of apples to use, the notes Mom left in my cookbook suggest Granny Smith, Jonathan, or McIntosh. I used McIntosh, and the result was great: they seem to be a little less juicy than other apples, and their tart flavor is brought out by the sugar, instead of competing with it. I think I actually used a little more than 6 cups of apples — I peeled and sliced 8 medium sized apples, which made a nice thick layer of apple after baking.

CC BY-NC-SA, Richard Kim

After you’ve peeled your apples, just sprinkle with cinnamon, mix the topping, and crumb it on top of the apples.

CC BY-NC-SA, Richard Kim

Bake at 350° for 35 to 40 minutes, and enjoy.

Apple Crisp, CC BY-NC-SA, Richard Kim

Thanks to Richard for taking photos of the process, and for being willing to be a guinea pig. You can find the full set of Apple Crisp photos on Flickr.