Apple Custard Crisp

Wow. Just WOW.

This simple little dessert delivers mightily on flavor and texture.  

We were oohing and ahhing over how delicious it was 

(expected, as the aromas during baking were amazing !).

Even better...since the recipe was publicly posted on the 

Wall Street Journal Food & Drink site I am actually able

 to share it via this blog. YAY !!!

Admittedly there are lots of cobbler/crisp recipes out there 

and they're typically quite simple, but I felt the combination of 

ingredients plus the resulting texture that this crisp ended up 

with was outstanding. I used the oatmeal suggestion and I think 

that made a huge difference between good and fabulous for me. 

This recipe is absolutely going on my short list of what 

to prepare quickly for my family OR for guests

 - and not many recipes make it to that elusive list.

I've even opted to change this recipe out for the apple

 crumb pie that graces our Thanksgiving dessert menu.

  Yup. It's that fabulous.

I know I sound like a broken record but I truly can't get

 over how many recipes are in this book. I've enjoyed 

everything that we've prepared so far and 

picked up more books for gift giving !!

Happy Thanksgiving !

Apple Custard Crisp

ACTIVE TIME: 30 minutes TOTAL TIME: 2½ hours SERVES: 8

For the crisp topping:

¾ cup all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon brown sugar

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon fine sea salt

5½ tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cubed

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

For the apple-custard base:

1½ pounds Golden Delicious apples

Zest and juice of 1 juicy lemon

½ cup heavy cream

¼ cup packed brown sugar

Pinch of ground cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger or cardamom

1 large egg 

1 large egg yolk

1 tablespoon Calvados or dark rum (optional)

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Vanilla ice-cream, for serving

1. Make the crisp topping: In a bowl, whisk together flour, both sugars, cinnamon and salt. Drop in cubes of cold butter and toss with fingers until butter is coated. Squeeze and rub ingredients together to form moist clumps and curds. Sprinkle with vanilla and toss to blend. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 4 days. 

2. Make the apple-custard base: Preheat oven to 375 degrees and set rack in center position. Place a deep-dish 9-inch pie plate on a baking sheet lined with parchment to catch spills. 

3. Peel, halve, core and cut apples into 1½-inch cubes. Transfer apples to pie plate. Stir in lemon zest and juice. 

4. In a medium bowl, whisk together cream, brown sugar, spice, egg and egg yolk to blend thoroughly, about 1 minute. Whisk in Calvados and vanilla. Pour custard over apples and jiggle pie plate to encourage custard to slide into all the spaces. 

5. Scatter the apple-custard base with crisp topping and tap topping lightly with your fingers so it sticks.

6. Transfer to oven and bake until crisp is golden brown and apples are tender, 50-60 minutes. If crisp appears to be browning too quickly, tent loosely with foil. 

7. Transfer baking sheet to a wire rack and let crisp rest at least 10 minutes before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

—Adapted from “Everyday Dorie” by Dorie Greenspan (Rux Martin/ Houghton Mifflin Harcourt )