Gluten Free Apple Crisp Recipe

Apple crisps are all about the texture and flavor combination. They absolutely need both flavor AND texture to make the dish complete. This gluten free apple crisp has exactly that.

I’ve made a few crisp recipes over the years, but never with totally satisfactory results. Sometimes the fruit was too soft, sometimes too hard or chunky. Sometimes the whole thing was just too dry, and sometimes it might as well have been fruit puree with oats. Breakfast anyone?

So this time, I did my research and I carefully considered the textures I wanted in the final dish. And the result was this perfect apple crips without any gluten or even dairy.

What Makes An Apple Crisp Gluten Free?

Mostly, it’s just making sure that the ingredients you use here are labeled as gluten free. There is no wheat in this recipe, so as long as your ingredients are definitely gluten free, this recipe becomes naturally so.

Oat Flour Apple Crisp

Oat flour is the perfect flour for an apple crisp. Not only does the flavor blend in with the whole oats, it also adds texture that wheat flour does not.

If you need this to be gluten free, make sure your oats are gluten free. Oats are some of the most cross-contaminated grains there are. So this is important for somebody who is sensitive to gluten in any way.

How To keep A Gluten Free Crisp From Getting Soggy

Personally, I like my apple crisp the next day when the grains have slightly softened and everything has truly melded together.

But if you prefer to keep things crispy, your best bet is to reheat your apple crisp in the oven at 350 F. for about 10-15 minutes, or until warmed through.

Also, when storing your apple crisp in the fridge, it can be helpful to only cover the cut end with plastic wrap. Don’t cover the topping. It will keep the oats a bit dryer in the fridge.

That paired with reheating and your apple crisp in the oven should keep things pretty darn crispy on top.

Easy Apple Crisp

Wondering how to make a gluten free apple crisp? Well not only is it a fast dessert, it’s totally easy too!

Here are some tips for getting a great apple crisp every time.

Apples – (4 large) Peel and slice them thin. If you have an apple slicer at home like the one below, use it. It makes the perfect thickness for the perfect apple crisp.

Lemon juice – (1 tbsp.) This will keep your apples from browning. Once they are peeled, cut and cored, toss them immediately with the lemon juice if that’s a huge concern for you. I just mixed everything together (you can see it in the video below) and it was fine. But if it’s a concern, that’s the solution.

Granular Sweetener – (¼ + ½ cup) I personally used xylitol because it’s what works best for my blood sugar. But coconut sugar would be amazing here. Sucanat or Monk Fruit will work too. Omit this completely if your apples are very sweet.

Maple Syrup – (¼ cup) Use the real stuff. It’s hands-down, unequalled. You can use light or dark, but if you have the choice, choose the darker syrup for this.

Honey – (2 tbsp.) – While this isn’t a totally necessary addition, it adds a nice little something to the overall flavor. However, if you don’t have it, you can omit it.

Pure vanilla extract – (1 tsp.) Again, use the real stuff. Imitation is exactly that. Second best in the flavor department. I used a bourbon vanilla, but anything that’s real will work here. You want real flavor in this, not the fake stuff.

Arrowroot powder – (2 tbsp.) I find arrowroot to be a better ingredient than cornstarch. But if you only have cornstarch, that will work here too.

Spices – Ground cinnamon (2 tsp. divided), ginger (½ tsp.) and nutmeg (¼ tsp.) are the flavor keys here. Use the best quality spices you can afford and make sure there are no fillers or sugar added in the ingredient list.

Oats – (¾ cup) You’ll want old fashion oat here. They, hands down, have the best texture and hold up the best in the oven. Do not use quick cook oats (which will get mushy) or steel cut oats (which will stay too hard).

Oat flour – (½ cup) You can grind up some extra oats at home if you like. Just make sure you can grind them into a fine flour. A coarser grind won’t work very well here. Or purchase some gluten free oat flour which will already be finely ground. Whichever works best for you.

Almond flour – (½ cup) This adds wonderful texture to the crisp as well as giving it a bit of roasted almond flavor.

Salt – (¼ tsp.) I used Himalayan pink salt, but any salt here will work. A small amount of salt brings out the sweetness of this dish in just the right way.

Coconut oil – (¼ cup) This takes the place of butter because I don’t eat dairy. If you only have butter on hand, that will substitute just fine in equal amounts.

How To Make An Apple Crisp

Preheat oven to 350 F. and oil your casserole dish.

First you’ll want to prep your apples and place them in the casserole dish. Mine was 7½ X 10″.

Mix in all the filling ingredients and stir well to coat the apples.

In a separate bowl, mix all the topping ingredients, included the melted coconut oil (or butter if using that).

Spread the topping over the apples and bake for 40-50 minutes.

About My Apple Peeler

If you’re wondering about how I cut my apples, I used this handy little apple peeler/corer/slicer. It’s so much fun to use! Kids love to peel apples with this thing and it gives you a uniform cut that is extra nice in this apple crisp recipe.

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More Apple Recipes:

• Apple Bread Recipe
• Apple Fries
• Apple Smoothie

Gluten Free Apple Crisp Recipe