cranberry apple crisp

This was our snack on Sunday. I had to seriously restrain myself from eating the whole pot full. Apple crisp was my favorite dessert growing up, tied with cheesecake. I remember mom used to make this at least once a month. Since we had a bag of apples that were a little past their prime, I decided to attempt making my own recipe.

In all honesty, I tried making apple crisp about 3 years ago and ended giving it entirely to my roommate. The "crisp" on the top was chewy and not at all cooked. It tasted okay, but the texture was gross. This time, I was determined to do it right. I was petty sure the reason it didn't turn out the previous time, was because I didn't add enough butter. So, I added lots of it this time, but I used margarine instead. The verdict? Amazing. Melt in your mouth apples with crunchy cinnamon-y topping topped with a scoopful of heaven (aka.light Cool Whip). Must. Not. Eat. Whole. Pan.

Cranberry Apple Crisp
Preheat oven to 375F.

5-6 apples
squirt of lemon juice
handful of Craisins
1/8c apple cider (unpasteurized)

Squirt a bit of lemon juice in a medium bowl. Core & slice the apples and toss with the lemon juice to reduce browning. When finished, lightly pack apple slices into a corningware dish (I used a round white one). Add a handful of Craisins. Pour cider over apples.

1-1/2c large flake oats
1/4+ c margarine
1/4c brown sugar

Mix these ingredients in a bowl until crumbly. Mixture should look something like this:

cinnamon, nutmeg & cloves

Spoon crumbly oats over apples and press down lightly. Sprinkle with a generous amount of cinnamon and a sparing amount of nutmeg & cloves. Bake at 375F for 40 mins. Top with a big spoonful of Cool Whip or ice-cream. Serve warm.

*If there's too much water/cider in the bottom, just drain it a bit! Maybe next time I'll try soaking the apples in the cider and then draining before putting them in the pan. If I do, I'll post an update.

Indulge!