This gluten free dairy free apple crisp will have your mouth watering and have your family craving more. This dessert is one that I make for my family for a sweet treat and often serve when we are hosting company. It’s also a hit to drop off to friends and family when taking a meal when they are recovering from illness or surgeries.
When I first needed to become gluten free, one of the dreads I had was never being able to eat my favorite foods again. So began searching and searching for alternatives to convert my favorite recipes into the recipes that I use today. No gluten, minimal if any dairy, and low to no refined sugars. So here came the fabulous and healthy gluten free, dairy free apple crisp that I share with you today.
This recipe is very similar to my peach crisp recipe that I also make. Peaches are ripe in my area in August, so we go to a local farm, buy bushels of fresh peaches and can them. Just like we do for our homemade applesauce.
How to make this healthy Apple Crisp
First, it’s all about the apples. We have a local farm that sells the sweet tango variety of apple. And it’s delicious. I love that it’s a sweet apple with a crisp crunch. However, if it’s an off season, I will buy a variety of apples from our local farm market. In my mind, the more variety with your apples, the better flavor you will get.
There are sweet apples and tart apples, with all the variances in between. Some are sweeter than other sweet apples, some are more tart than other tart apples. And then you have variety’s that are more crisp, and some that are more soft. The great thing here tho, is with using an unsweetened applesauce, there is already a variety of flavors in that in most cases. So if you find yourself unable to have a variety, it really isn’t a big deal.
Once you pick your apples, you’ll need to give them a good wash and rinse and the peel and core them. After peeling and coring, you’ll need to dice them up. I try to dice them into cubes absolutely no bigger than 1/2 inch by 1/2 inch. This allows them to cook within the normal baking time. Of course, if you prefer a thinly sliced apple, by all means slice them instead.
Time to coat your apples with the filling ingredients. I personally like the spiciness of the cinnamon and nutmeg, so I tend to add a few extra dashes. But if you do not, feel free to use a little less. Once the apples are well coated, transfer them to your baking dish. Here they will sit and “marinate” in the spices while you prepare the crisp topping.
Making the crisp topping
Now, for that oat topping! This topping will have a little bit of a crunch from the oats, and the fats from the coconut oil make the topping crisp beautifully. And that almond butter gives the most delightful nutty flavor that everyone just loves. Don’t leave this out or it will just not taste the same.
But this is where most recipes call for an all-purpose flour. This recipe uses almond flour in its place, yes it also adds a mild nutty flavor, but this is your binder between your oats and your wet ingredients. You don’t want your dry ingredients to be sopping wet. So make sure you mix your almond butter well before measuring so you don’t get too much of the free oil that is in the jar.
Enjoy!
Gluten Free Dairy free Apple Crisp
Ingredients
Apple Filling
- 20 medium to large apples see notes
- 2 cups unsweetened applesauce
- 4 tbsp arrowroot powder
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 5 tbsp coconut sugar
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
Crisp
- 3 cup organic rolled oats
- 2 cup almond flour
- 1/3 cup coconut sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 cup almond butter
- 1 cup virgin coconut oil melted
- 2 tsp vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare a 13x9 baking dish with nonstick spray such as avocado oil spray.
- Peel and dice apples.
- In large mixing bowl, mix together diced apples, apple sauce, arrowroot powder, vanilla, lemon juice, coconut sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon until completely coated.
- dump apple mixture into baking dish, spreading evenly with a spatula.
- Using the same mixing bowl for the crisp topping; combine the oats, almond flour, coconut sugar, salt and cinnamon, almond butter, melted coconut oil and vanilla. Mix well until completely combined and all dry ingredients are moistened.
- Sprinkle crisp topping evenly over apple mixture, using your hands if need be. Pat down to flatten.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the crisp is golden brown.
- Let rest for 15 minutes. Serve warm with your favorite non dairy vanilla ice cream or coconut whipped cream.
- Cover remaining crisp and store in refrigerator.