We just came back from our local orchard from a whole day of apple picking. As is the case with these fruit picking sessions, we came back home with the juiciest fresh apples, which means I have a full day of cooking ahead.
In addition to this vegan apple crumble/crisp, I plan on making my unsweetened applesauce, apple salad, healthy apple crumble, and apple cinnamon oatmeal.
I love this recipe because:
- This vegan dessert is the perfect fall dessert that happens to be minimally sweetened with maple syrup. It uses simple ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry.
- It is crumb heavy. My vegan crumble topping recipe is made with rolled oats, almond flour, and coconut oil, and it is nice and crispy. Not to mention it pairs beautifully with pillowy baked cinnamon apples. If you are like me, a fan of the crispy topping more than the fruit layer, you are in for a treat.
- It uses coconut oil (aka my favorite butter substitute for apple crisp). I find that coconut oil has a very mild flavor that compliments the rest of the ingredients.
- It is probably one of the easiest desserts that you can make in under an hour.
Ingredients You’ll Need:
As it is with most fruit crumble recipes, this vegan crumble recipe has two parts: The fruit layer and the crumble topping.
The Apple Layer:
For the fruit layer, you will need four medium-sized cubed apples, maple syrup, lemon juice, ground cinnamon, salt, and arrowroot powder (or cornstarch).
The best apples for apple crisp: When it comes to apple desserts, I usually like to use various apples. In this plant-based apple crisp recipe, I used a combination of Ginger Gold and Honeycrisp apples.
With that being said, any type of apple would work in this recipe. My recommendation is to use two types to take advantage of the different flavor profiles. For example, if you like sweet apples be sure to combine them with a tart apple like Granny Smith apples for a delicious sweet and sour combo of flavors.
Crisp/Crumble Topping Ingredients:
For the crumble topping, you will need gluten-free oats (not the quick-cooking kind), almond flour, shredded coconut, ground cinnamon, coconut oil, maple syrup, and a handful of pecans (or any other nuts you like).
Ingredient Substitutions:
- Starch: If you do not have arrowroot powder you can use cornstarch.
- Almond Flour: You can use almond flour and almond meal interchangeably in this recipe.
- Oil: If you are not a fan of coconut oil, you can use melted and cooled vegan butter or avocado oil as well.
- Ground oats (aka Rolled Oats): If you are after a gluten-free apple crisp recipe, make sure that the oats you use are gluten-free certified.
- Nuts: Any nuts would work here.
- Maple syrup: You can use agave nectar in place of maple syrup.
How To Make?
The process of making this vegan apple dessert has three folds:
Make The Apple Filling:
To make the apple filling, place all the ingredients in a large bowl, and give it a gentle stir to make sure that the apples are evenly coated with the arrowroot mixture.
Make The Crisp Topping:
To make the crumble topping, place oats, almond flour, shredded coconut, ground cinnamon, coconut oil, maple syrup in a large mixing bowl, and mix.
At first, it might feel like you need more liquid, but trust me, you do not need more. Stir in the pecans.
Assemble:
To assemble the apple crisp:
- Spread the apple mixture at the bottom of a 9 or 10-inch oven-proof baking dish (you can also use a 9X13 casserole dish)in an even layer.
- Distribute the crumble topping evenly on top.
- Bake in a 350 degrees F preheated oven for 40- 45 minutes or until the top part turns golden brown.
How to store and make ahead this apple crisp?
- Storage: This recipe serves 6 servings. I doubt that you will have any leftovers, but if you do, place them in an airtight container and keep it in the fridge for up to 2 days. When ready to serve, warm it in a low heat oven (250-300 degrees F) for 5-10 minutes.
- Make-ahead: You can prep the apples a day in advance and keep them in an airtight container in the fridge until you are ready to use them. They will probably brown a little bit, but since you will bake them, it shouldn’t be a problem. I do not recommend making the vegan crumble topping in advance as it could get soggy. Luckily, it takes no more than 5 minutes to put all the ingredients in a bowl and mix them.
How To Serve?
While this vegan apple crisp recipe is delicious enough to serve by itself, you can also top it off with vegan vanilla ice cream like my Coconut Milk Cashew Ice Cream or coconut whipped cream. If you don’t mind it being a vegetarian apple crumble recipe, you can also top it off with my homemade vanilla ice cream.
If you are serving it for breakfast, you can put it in a bowl and serve it with a glass of homemade almond milk.
FAQs:
It is totally up to you. I prefer not to peel mine, but either way would work.
You can either cut them into small ½-inch cubes or ¼ inch slices. The shape is up to you. However, I recommend making sure that they are in a similar size to ensure even baking.
This recipe uses one tablespoon of maple syrup for the apple layer and ⅓ cup for the crumble topping. I think that it is just the right amount.
However, if your apples are super sweet, you can omit the addition of maple syrup in the fruit layer and use ¼ cup of maple syrup in the crumble topping instead. Doing so is especially a good idea if you are planning to serve it with ice cream.
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There you have it friends, an easy-to-make vegan, gluten-free, refined-sugar-free apple crisp recipe perfect for fall and the upcoming holiday season. Next time you visit your closest Albertsons Companies family of stores, including ACME Markets, Jewel-Osco, Vons, Pavilions, Randalls, Tom Thumb, Shaw’s, Star Market, United Supermarkets, and Carrs/Safeway, be sure to check out their O Organics® and Open Nature® products for a rich collection of plant-based, gluten-free, high protein, biodegradable and compostable items.
And with their Delivery or Drive-Up and Go feature, I love that I can shop online and have it delivered to save a trip to the store.
Other Vegan Apple Recipes You Might Like:
If you enjoy these kinds of easy apple desserts, then you might also like the recipes below:
- Healthy Apple Crumble
- Apple Baked Oatmeal
- Apple Roses
- Almond Flour Apple Cake
- Can’t get enough of apple recipes? Check out all Easy Apple Recipes
If you try this Healthy Apple Crips recipe or any other recipe on Foolproof Living, please take a minute to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. It helps others who are thinking of making the recipe. And if you took some pictures, be sure to share them on Instagram using #foolproofeats so I can share them on my stories.
Vegan Apple Crisp Recipe
Ingredients
For The Apple Layer:
- 4 apples medium sized – cut into ½ inch cubes*
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 2 gr
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons arrowroot powder or cornstarch – 14 gr
For The Crisp Topping:
- 1 cup rolled oats not the quick-cooking kind- 100 gr
- 1 cup almond flour/meal 120 gr.
- ½ cup shredded coconut 40 gr
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 7 tablespoons coconut oil melted and cooled
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- ½ cup pecans roughly chopped 50 gr
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
To prepare the apples:
- Place apples, maple syrup, lemon juice, ground cinnamon, kosher salt, and arrowroot powder in a bowl. Give it a stir. Place it in a 9 or 10-inch baking dish.
To prepare the crisp:
- Mix together the rolled oats, almond flour, shredded coconut, ground cinnamon, kosher salt, coconut oil, maple syrup and pecans in a bowl. Mix until well combined.
To Assemble & Bake:
- Distribute the crisp topping onto the apples in an even layer.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes or until the topping turns lightly golden.
- Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a cup of almond milk on the side.
Notes
- What kind of apples should I use? Feel free to use any kind of apples you like. I personally like to use two different kinds for different flavors but either way would work.
- How to peel & cut? I personally don’t feel it necessary to peel the apples but it is a personal choice. Either way would work. You can slice them or cut them into cubes as I did.
- Can I make it ahead? You can prep the apples a day in advance and keep them in an airtight container in the fridge until you are ready to use them. They will probably brown a little bit, but since you will bake them, it shouldn’t be a problem. I do not recommend making the vegan crumble topping in advance as it could get soggy. Luckily, it takes no more than 5 minutes to put all the ingredients in a bowl and mix them.
- How to store the leftovers? This recipe serves 6 servings. I doubt that you will have any leftovers, but if you do, place it in an airtight container and keep it in the fridge for up to 2 days. When ready to serve, warm it in a low heat oven (250-300 degrees F) for 5-10 minutes.
Phyllis
I will definitely make this recipe: good in the winter months.
Can I use coconut flour instead?
Aysegul Sanford
Hello there,
Sadly, I don’t think that it would work with coconut flour.
I hope this helps.
Best,
Aysegul
Jessica Rosenthal
Fantastic recipe!!! I served this apple crisp recipe when my in laws came for a visit. We all absolutely LOVED it!
Aysegul Sanford
This makes me so happy Jessica. Thanks so much for coming by and taking the time to leave a review.
Cheers!
Sally
Hi! Looks like an amazing recipe but I am not clear on the oats. Are they supposed to be ‘ground’ or just plain rolled without grinding? It says ‘ground oats’ at the beginning of the article, so not sure.
Thank you
Aysegul Sanford
HI Sally,
Thanks for catching that.
You are right, it should be rolled oats. I am not sure if you live in the US, but I usually by my rolled oats from Trader Joes. I like their gluten free version of it.
I hope this helps.
Cheers.
Samantha Rodgers
I just made this apple crisp recipe after watching you making it on Instagram. OH MY!!!! It is so good. I wasn’t sure about how I felt about adding oats but I will never go back to flour after making this. This recipe is a keeper. I know I will make it again and again.
Thanks Ice.
Aysegul Sanford
YAY! This makes me so happy Samantha. So happy to hear that you liked it.
Thanks for coming by and taking the time to review the recipe.
Cheers!