Warm, soft, baked apples are topped with a crispy, crumbly, buttery topping in this easy recipe for Buttery Apple Crumble. Add this to your fall to-do list!

Apple season is a time for heading to orchards and picking apples. It’s a time when school’s back in session and fall sports are underway. And it’s when the balmy days of summer transition to sweater weather.

As much as I enjoy summertime, sweater weather also has its perks. Cool weather, warm sweaters? It’s lovely.

More importantly, though, apple season has its perks. And by that I mean apples — juicy, luscious apples that can be eaten, made into applesauce and baked into countless dishes.

And when it comes to baking with apples, it’s okay if they are blemished. They will still make lovely foods like this Buttery Apple Crumble.

How to make a Buttery Apple Crumble

Start by peeling the apples. A standard peeler will do the job. Once they are peeled, cube them and place them in a mixing bowl.

Sprinkle the apples with sugar and cinnamon. This emboldens the flavor of this dish. Stir it all together — or rather, gently toss it all other so the apples are all coated with the cinnamon and sugar.

Then spread them into a baking dish. You want them to be in an even layer.

Then make the topping. Mix together oats, flour and brown sugar. Then cut in the butter. Finally, sprinkle that all over the apples. You want to spread it evenly over them, so take care to do that.

Finally, into the oven it goes, where it will bake and bubble into a lovely, warm dessert to be enjoyed with ice cream later. The ice cream is, of course, optional, but the contrast of warm crumble and cold ice cream is pretty divine.

Buttery Apple Crumble

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

3 cups peeled, cored and cubed apples
 2 tbsp granulated sugar
 1 tsp cinnamon
 pinch salt
 1/2 cup uncooked oats (not instant)
 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 
1/4 cup light brown sugar
 5 tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium bowl, stir together the apples, sugar, cinnamon and salt. Spread into a glass baking dish (a round pie plate or an 8×8-inch dish will work. Spread into an even layer.
In a small mixing bowl, add the oats, flour and sugar. Add the butter and use either two knives or a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the mixture until coarse crumbs form. Sprinkle over the apples.
Slide the baking dish into the oven and cook for 45-50 minutes, until golden on top and bubbling at the sides. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly before serving.