When we were young, my mom always made fruit crumbles and crisps. They’re a taste of home and comfort.
This easy apple crumble recipe has tender, sweet cinnamon apples under a buttery brown sugar crumble.
With just a few simple steps (and ingredients you likely have on hand), this delicious dessert is ready to put into the oven.
You’ll Be Making This Apple Crumble Recipe on Repeat Because…
- Most importantly, it’s super delicious!
- It’s easy to make and uses ingredients you likely have on hand.
- It’s budget-friendly, making it a great dessert to prepare for a crowd.
- Apple crumble can be served warm or chilled – we even enjoy the leftovers for breakfast with yogurt.
Ingredients for Apple Crumble
In addition to the apples mentioned above, you’ll need just a handful of pantry ingredients for this apple crumble recipe.
- Apples: I use Granny Smith apples, as I love their tart flavor and they hold their shape well. Other great options include Honeycrisp, Gala, Braeburn, or Pink Lady.
- Flour: All-purpose flour thickens the juices in the filling and is also the base of the crumble topping.
- Sugar: A sprinkle of cinnamon sugar sweetens the filling, and a combination of white and brown sugar is used in the topping for flavor.
- Butter: Cold butter is mixed into the topping for flavor and a buttery texture. Margarine can be used in place.
How to Make Apple Crumble
Sometimes simple is best when it comes time to make dessert. It reminds me of the desserts my mom used to make when I was younger.
- Prepare topping: Place topping ingredients (recipe below) in a bowl and cut with a pastry cutter until it forms large crumbs. Refrigerate while preparing apples.
- Prepare apples: Peel and slice them, and then toss them with sugar, flour, and cinnamon.
- Bake: Add the apple filling to a baking dish and sprinkle with the topping. Bake until golden brown.
Feel free to add some finely chopped pecans or walnuts.
Holly’s Top Tips Apple Crumble
- In this recipe, use cold butter and mix the topping until it starts to stick together.
- If the topping is powdery in texture, mix it longer, it will hold together.
- Refrigerate the topping while peeling the apples to keep the butter cold, which makes the topping crumbly and crisp.
- Use firm apples so they don’t lose their shape and become mushy while baking.
- Check the apple crumble early so the apples don’t overcook (or they will turn into applesauce)!
Storage, Freezing, and Leftovers
- Prep ahead: Prepare this apple crumble recipe up to 24 hours before baking. If making ahead, toss the apples with a spoonful of lemon juice so they don’t brown.
- Leftovers: Once baked, store the crumble in the fridge or on the counter for up to 2 days.
- Freezing: Apple crumble can be frozen either before or after baking. Thaw in the fridge overnight and bake as directed adding about 5 to 10 minutes to the baking time
Apple crumble (as in this recipe) has a simple streusel topping made of butter, flour, sugar, and spices.
Apple crisp contains oats and nuts.
Apple cobbler is more of a cake-like or biscuit-like topping, depending on the recipe.
More Apple Desserts
Did your family love this Apple Crumble? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Homemade Apple Crumble
Equipment
Ingredients
- 6 cups apples peeled and chopped, 1" pieces
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon or apple pie spice
Crumble Topping
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup brown sugar packed
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ⅛ teaspoon ground ginger optional
- ½ cup unsalted butter cold, cut into cubes
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 375°F.
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To make the topping, in a medium bowl, combine 1 cup flour, ⅓ cup white sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and ginger if using. Add the cold butter and use a pastry cutter to cut in butter until the mixture starts to stick together and form crumbs the size of large peas, about 3 to 4 minutes. Place in the fridge while preparing the apples.
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Place the sliced apples in a 2qt baking dish and toss with ¼ cup sugar, 2 tablespoons flour, and cinnamon.
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Sprinkle the prepared crumble topping over the apple mixture. Bake uncovered for 35-40 minutes or until golden and the apples are soft.
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Serve warm or room temperature with vanilla ice cream if desired.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
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Made it for a Labor Day get together and got rave reviews!
my family just loved it! thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe of yours. 5 stars!
Looks like apple crumble is the recipe to commemorate the day of being ‘locked up’ with the passport girls ;) This comment will be absurd to most people reading it haha.
Pleasure serving time with you today Holly ! All the best to your team and you! Looking forward to your book !
LOL, your comment made my day!! And what a day – so glad I got to pass the time with you and the other passport girls Enjoy the wedding and I hope we get to meet again soon!
Just thought I’d come back and see if you read it – haha – Thanks!
LOL! I sure did. :)
Can I swap the apples for any other fruit? Say six cups of peaches?
While the crumble will work with any fruit, the fruit may need a different amount of sweetener or thickener. 6 cups of peaches are juicy so you might need a little more flour. Let us know how it goes!
I have been trying to find the right apple crumble recipe and have been unsuccessful until now! This is a keeper!! I’ll be making this for Passover this year. Thanks so much!!
I did make this for Passover. I doubled the recipe and cooked for about 45 min and it came out perfectly. I kept it warm and served it with vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce. Everyone commented on how good it was and wanted the recipe!
Great recipe and very easy. I added chopped pecans to the crumble. From now on I’ll add chopped pecans to crumble toppings. It gives the best crunchy texture to the topping. Thanks for this recipe Holly!
So glad you enjoyed it!
Delicious ! thank you!
Heaven sent melt in your mouth deliciousness. I’ve already made it twice in two weeks. You’ve created a monster – I cannot stop!
I’ve made this recipe several times and my family loves it
Delicious! I made this for Thanksgiving and the whole family LOVED it. My new go to for dessert!
Oh my goodness, this was incredible. I didn’t have a pastry cutter so I used a fork and it did the same thing. I think I’ll omit the ginger next time. But oh my gosh I will be making this for years to come. 10 out of 10
Love , Love, Loved this recipe first try at an apple crumble and it was so good I made a smaller batch in a small square pan and I squoze used the same amount of sugar in the apple filling using half white /half brown I added a drizzle of vanilla flavor an 2Tbs of butter and instead of just Cinnamon I added half tsp of nutmeg.
How about using Gluten Free flour blend to make this a gluten free dessert?
Definitely! An all-purpose gluten free flour would work great in this recipe, Marian.