Earlier this week, I made the most amazing baked apples with oatmeal crumb topping. Baked apples are one of my favorite desserts to make during the cooler months in Ohio. Lately, all we’ve been seeing here in Ohio is a combination of rain, slush, and cold weather. Kevin and I spent a large part of last month traveling and visiting family in Hong Kong. Throughout our trip to Hong Kong for the lunar new year, we had some of the most remarkable food from some of the best restaurants. There were just tons and tons of options in every corner of every street throughout Hong Kong. The only downside was I didn’t get a chance to cook during our trip. When we got back to Ohio, it took some time for us to recover from jet lag and travel fatigue. During the first two weeks back, I found myself getting super sleepy throughout the day. Saturdays and Sundays turned into catching up on sleep days. Last weekend was the first weekend since we got back where I didn’t need to take a mid-day nap. Even with eating all of the wonderful food Hong Kong had to offer, somehow, I found myself really missing home cooking. Over the last few weeks, I spent almost all of my free time outside of work testing and developing recipes. One of the recipes I came up with is my baked apples with oatmeal crumb topping. This dish combines two of my favorite cold weather comfort foods – apples and the crumb topping from my crumb cakes. I came up with this dish when thinking of new ways to make my usual baked apples. Instead of topping individual halved apples with a scoop of crumb topping, I diced up a few apples and applied a generous amount of crumb topping onto the diced apples. I also folded in a cup of rolled oats to give the crumb topping added crunch when baked. There is just something so comforting about baked apples topped with a crispy, buttery crumb topping. I could’ve eaten the baked apples with oatmeal crumb topping on its own, but when Kevin suggested serving the baked apples with a couple scoops of vanilla ice cream, my mind was forever changed. The contrast of the hot, crispy baked apples paired with the cold, creamy ice cream made for the perfect dessert on a winter day. I just wish the icky, slushy cold weather could turn into beautiful, sunny warm days.
For the baked apples:
· 2 large Fuji apples, cored and diced
· 2 large Granny Smith apples, cored and diced
· ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
· ½ teaspoon turbinado sugar or granulated sugar
For the oatmeal crumb topping:
· 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
· ¼ cup all-purpose flour
· ½ cup dark brown sugar
· ½ cup granulated sugar
· ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
· 1 cup rolled oats
Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350°F. Set aside a baking dish.
2) In a mixing bowl, toss the diced apples with ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon and ½ teaspoon of turbinado sugar or granulated sugar. Pour the diced apples in one even layer in the baking dish.
3) Make the oatmeal crumb topping by combining the unsalted butter, flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and rolled oats in a bowl using your fingers. Press the ingredients together until you form clumps. Distribute the clumps of crumb topping generously over the top of the diced apples.
4) Bake the apples with the oatmeal crumb topping in the oven for 45-50 minutes, until the apples are cooked through, and the crumb topping develops a deep golden-brown exterior.
Takeaways: This dish is best when served fresh and with a couple scoops of vanilla ice cream. When the dish is removed from the oven, the crumb topping should have developed a deep golden brown color and a nice crunch. Alternative fruits you can use in place of apples include blueberries, strawberries, or a blend of both.