Apple Crisp

Start Asking Why Not

 I know when most people think of Apple Crisp, they think of dessert. Don’t get me wrong, it's a fabulous dessert, especially following a delicious Sunday dinner on a chilly fall afternoon.  I traditionally make a batch of Apple Crisp after a successful trip to our local apple orchard each fall.  This year however, I took a different route.  I dared to branch out.  I took a road I had never traveled. It wasn’t planned,  but it sure turned out to be a hit.  I added Apple Crisp to the breakfast menu. I know what you are thinking, that's your big dare and different route? You were probably expecting something a bit more adventurous and life altering.  I get it.  But, if you think about it, most of us have certain tags or categories that we place on food and only eat those foods at certain times.  We don’t give much thought to the why behind it, we simply just proceed to do what we have always done.  Eating breakfast foods for dinner comes to mind.  Have you ever had pancakes, waffles or french toast for dinner? There is something exciting and really fun about it right?  Probably because you are doing something very different than what you usually do. There is a bit of a rush or satisfaction that comes with going against the grain.  There are businesses that have built empires because they did just that, they went against the grain.  You can probably name off a few popular restaurants that have done very well using the, serve breakfast all day, model.  I bet when someone first pitched that idea, it was met with much resistance. I bet there were many who thought the idea of opening a restaurant that focused on serving things like pancakes and waffles all day long sounded absolutely ridiculous.  I also tend to think the same was true when someone pitched the idea of cafes and coffee shops.  People traditionally drink coffee in the morning.  How would an all day coffee shop survive? Who would pay $5.00 or more for a cup of coffee.  Well, we now do know that breakfast restaurants, coffee shops and cafes and $5.00 cups of coffee were and are very successful business ideas.  Someone took a different road, dared to branch out, think differently and said, why not? There are times when thinking about the why, we then find ourselves asking why not? This was exactly what happened to me as I decided to serve a traditional dessert for breakfast. It's not a life changing million dollar business idea, but maybe a start for thinking about why we choose certain foods at certain times, and how changing things up a bit might better serve us.

 Better Than Donuts

 If I said that I had planned ahead of time to have Apple Crisp for breakfast, I would be lying.  It was really on a whim because I was lacking ingredients for pancakes or waffles for Sunday morning breakfast. I like to have something a little bit special for a nice family Sunday breakfast.  I think it's a nice treat as we end one week and gear up for another.  It's also a little reward for all that we accomplished over the past week.   So, because I was lacking the ingredients for pancakes or waffles I had to dig a little deeper.  As I was rummaging around my kitchen, hoping that I would be able to pull something together, the basket of apples that I had picked the week before stopped me in my tracks. At first I thought maybe I could make applesauce, but that didn’t seem like a good fit as the star of Sunday breakfast. Then it hit me, Apple Crisp.  Then I thought through all the reasons why Apple Crisp could be the star of the show for Sunday breakfast.  The main ingredient of course was fresh fruit, I thought that was a win right there.   Oatmeal, the second main ingredient, is one of the most popular breakfast foods there is!  The final reason, Apple Crisp is much better for you than donuts.  People eat donuts for breakfast on a regular basis.  I would also add coffee cake, muffins, croissants, breakfast rolls, Danish and bagels to the list of things that fall short of Apple Crisp. This was all solid logic to me and it was full steam ahead.  Our Sunday family breakfast was indeed Apple Crisp.

 Confidence Builder

Apple Crisp really is fairly quick and easy to make and only requires a few ingredients, most of which you will most likely have on hand.  I also developed my recipe for Apple Crisp to only use one bowl for mixing and the pan for baking. I try to develop recipes that don’t require using lots of dishes because I am not a big fan of clean up.  Many of you can probably relate to that.  Unlike other baked goods like muffins, donuts and coffee cake, Apple Crisp is nearly fail proof. If you lack confidence in your baking skills, this recipe is a great confidence builder.  This recipe can also be made gluten free by simply using gluten free oats and gluten free flour.  This recipe, like all of the recipes on this blog only use plant based ingredients.  The butter used in this recipe should be a plant based butter. 

Apple Crisp

 Ingredients

• 6 Fresh Apples
• 2 Tablespoons of White Sugar
• 1 ¾ Teaspoons of Cinnamon
• 1 Cup of Baking Soda
• ¾ Cup of Oats
• ¾ Cup of Flour
• ½ Cup Plant Based Butter
• A Pinch of Salt

Directions 

1. Preheat the oven to 350 and grease a 9x13 baking dish.
2. Peel and dice the apples and place them into a bowl.
3. Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl with the apples and stir well to incorporate the butter into the batter. 
4. Scoop the batter into the baking dish.
5. Bake for about 45 minutes.  Apple Crisp will be browned when ready.
6. Let it cool and enjoy!

Show Us Yours

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