Apple Crisp Alternatives

It's apple season! Apple pie is great, but my favorite apple dish has always been apple crisp. However, variety is the spice of life, so I started thinking of alternatives. I wanted to make something that reminded me of apple crisp, but wasn't apple crisp. I came up with 2 ideas.

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Apple Crisp Scones

My first idea was to make apple scones and add a crumble on top...like an apple crisp. I thought I had a unique idea. I was wrong. Type 'apple crumble scone' into Google, and you will find a ton of recipes. I took a scone recipe I'd used before and tweaked it a bit. Partly to make them apple-y and partly because I didn't have the exact ingredients my recipe called for. So I looked over several recipes and came up with a game plan. Spoiler: they turned out delicious.

Scone Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups flour

• 1/2 cup butter, cold

• 1 1/2 TBSP cornstarch

• 2 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1/2 cup milk

• 1 egg

• 1/4 cup sour cream

• 2+ tsp vanilla extract

• about 1 cup diced apple, frozen on a sheet pan

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Crumble Ingredients (This will make way more than you need for the scones. Make half a batch or save it for other desserts - see below)

• 1/2 cup butter

• 1/2 cup brown sugar

• 1/2 cup flour

• 1/2 cup oatmeal

• 2 tsp cinnamon

• pinch of cardamom

• pinch of salt

Instructions

1. In a food processor, combine flour, butter, and cornstarch until crumbly. Place the mixture in the freezer to chill while you combine the wet ingredients.

2. Combine the wet ingredients: milk, egg, sour cream, and vanilla. Set aside.

3. Remove the flour mixture from the freezer and add the remaining dry ingredients: sugar, baking powder, and salt.

4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.

5. Stir in apple pieces.

6. Turn the dough onto a heavily floured surface. Fold the dough over a few times, using plenty of flour. Shape into a ball and refrigerate while you make the crumble topping by simply combining the crumble ingredients in a bowl.

7. On a parchment-lined cookie sheet, form the dough into a disc about 1 inch thick for full-sized scones. Divide the dough into 2 discs for mini scones.

8. Crumble the topping over the dough disc(s) and gently press into the dough. Using a bench scraper or a knife, cut the disc(s) into 8 triangles.

9. Chill the dough in the freezer for 15 minutes before baking.

10. Bake at 400F for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned.

Variations

• If you aren't a fan of the crumble topping, skip it and just make apple scones. (I would add cinnamon to the scone dough)

• Use chopped dried apples instead of fresh.

• Use other fruit. I am a big fan of berry crumbles, so a berry crumble scone would be delicious!

• Add chopped pecans to the crumble or the scone dough

  
  

Tips -

• Keeping the dough cold is key. The final freezing step before baking is critical to attain the correct texture.

Baked Apple 'Crisp'

When I made the crumble for my scones, I had plenty left over to make these simple, apple-crisp-inspired baked apples.

Simply wash your apples, cut them in half, and cut out the core. Stuff them with crumble ingredients and bake at 350F until the apples are tender. Delicious and super easy!

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