Apple Crisp

Last fall we gathered LOTS of apples off our tree, peeled and froze them.  I package them with 8-9 cups of apples because that’s what the apple crisp recipe that I make calls for.

Now this apple crisp recipe isn’t any old recipe.  It has been tried and tested through at least two if not more generations.  When I met my husband, one of the things I quickly learned about him was his love of apple crisp.  His mom made it all the time…especially when we’d come to visit.  Before long, my boys loved the apple crisp she made too….there was only one problem, there wasn’t a real recipe.

After watching her and experimenting with what I saw, I’ve determined that this is as close to a recipe as we are going to get.

Take the 8-9 cups of apples and put them into a pan.  Add about a 1 1/2 cups of water to the bottom of the pan.  Add 1 cup of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon.  Bring it to a boil.  Mix together three heaping tablespoons of corn starch with 1/2 cup of water.  Stir it into the apples and thicken the mix.  Set it aside.

Soften 1 1/2 sticks of margarine.  Add 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1 cup sugar, 2 cups oatmeal and 1 3/4 cups flour.  Put about 1/2 of the mixture into a 9 x 13 pan.  Put in the apples.  Sprinkle the remaining oatmeal mixture over the top.  Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes.

I can make these in my sleep.  Honestly, I make one about every other week.  I know my son will be home this weekend from Cedar Rapids so I will be sure to have one here….it’s a family tradition that I am happy to carry on.  The only part of the tradition that has changed is that Hubby prefers it with whip cream rather than ice cream.