Oven Baked Apple Crisp with Bourbon

You are going to love this classic southern dessert - bourbon apple crisp! Made with peeled sliced granny smith apples, both brown and white sugar, warm spices, and a good chug of Kentucky Bourbon. Topped with a simple crunchy oat topping, it is oven-baked for 45 minutes. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream or homemade whipped cream. This has all the cozy flavor of fall and is a sweet treat I know you will love! Yields 6 servings.

Apple Desserts Are Unrated IMO

When we think of fall sweet treats I feel like pumpkin loaf or pumpkin cookies is a fan favorite and the first go-to.

But what about things like warm apple pie with a flaky pie crust?! Or a tender apple bundt cake with bourbon caramel glaze?! Or even just a simple 10-minute sweet cream cheese dip for apple slices?!

I mean come on - can the apple recipes get some love this fall?! 😉

This bourbon apple crisp marries everything about being a Southern cook AND from Kentucky - where the bourbon flows like tap water. We are tossing some peeled and sliced granny smith apples together with bourbon, white and brown sugar, some warm fall spices, and a little lemon juice to help prevent the browning. All tucked inside a baking dish and then topped with a simple oatmeal crumble topping that gives it the perfect crunch amongst the soft baked apples.

Baked in the oven for 40-45 minutes, your house will smell like an apple orchard and lure in all the neighbors. Let me show you how I make this in my kitchen.

First, make the filling!

🍏Why use granny smith apples? 🍏 Any time my mom baked with apples growing up, she always used Granny Smith. It is because they hold up when baking. They do not become mush or disintegrate into whatever dish you're making but hold their shape, and taste, and their distinct tart flavor stands out and compliments any sweet dessert. I recommend using only Granny Smith apples in this recipe.

When it comes to which bourbon to use - anything that you personally enjoy drinking is great. Usually, my mom always used Maker's Mark bourbon for anything cooking-related, but any Kentucky Bourbon will work just fine!

Then, make the simple oat topping

⭐️PRO TIP⭐️ - you need to use cold butter for this oat topping. But from years of making pie crust and homemade biscuits that also require you to cut in cold butter to the flour - do yourself a favor and make the job slightly easier by cutting it before adding to the flour. I take the cold stick of butter and cut it down a long way into thirds. Then flip once onto the next side and cut into thrids again (so you will have 9 long skinny sticks basically but still in the butter stick shape) - then slice it like you normally would butter making 9 small little cubes. Add those cubes into the flour mixture and use the pastry cutter from there to further break down into smaller pea-sized shapes in the topping.

Bake and enjoy!

Let this apple dessert cool for about 5-10 minutes in the pan then scoop out into bowls and serve warm with vanilla ice cream or homemade 2 ingredients whipped cream - you can't go wrong with either!

This also makes great leftovers and can be kept in the fridge for 2-3 days. It is also delicious eaten with a spoon out of the dish at 8:00 am cold with a cup of coffee - not that I know that from personal experience or anything.... 😉

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