Apple-Cherry Crisp

In October I received Melissa's blog Fried Ice and Donut Holes as my Secret Recipe Club assignment, and printed about 6 pages of recipes from her site! I shared her delicious Potato and Corn Chowder on reveal day, but had many more recipes I still wanted to give a try later. This yummy apple crisp is one of them! Melissa's version calls for frozen cranberries, but I had some dried cranberry / cherries in the freezer and decided to use those instead. It was delicious! Melissa's recipe called for 6 empire apples - I guess those must be a lot smaller than the ones I used, because I used 6 apples (half granny smith, half gala) and I needed a 9x13 pan to fit them in, so that's how I've written the recipe below. This is a wonderful fall dessert, and I really liked combining the firmer granny smiths with the softer gala apples - I had some tender but in tact pieces of apple alongside soft, mushier pieces of gooey apple. It was a great combination to me. Adjust the apples you use based on your textural preference! The topping mixture was perfect too - a little crumbly, but soft and almost pie crust like in some spots. Delicious dessert - and as with most fruity crisps / crumbles you can tweak the filling ingredients based on what you have and prefer to use. I'm sure this would be fantastic with peaches or pears too!

Apple-Cherry Crisp adapted from Fried Ice and Donut Holes

Ingredients

6 large apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced

1/2 cup dried cranberry / cherry blend

2 TBS lemon juice

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

4 TBS light brown sugar

Topping:

1 cup rolled oats

4 TBS light brown sugar

2 TBS flour

6 TBS butter

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees
2. In a medium bowl, combine the oats, 4 tablespoons of the brown sugar, and the flour.  With either a fork or your fingers, blend in the butter until crumbly.  
3. In a large bowl, combine the thinly sliced apples apples, cranberries / cherries, the remaining 4 tablespoons of brown sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  Toss gently to combine.   
4. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray and then spoon the apple mixture in.  Evenly distribute the topping mixture over the apples.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for about 35-40 minutes, or until the filling is bubbling and the top is golden brown.
6. Enjoy warm with whipped cream or ice cream, or allow to cool to room temperature.