Apple Crumble Spiced Topping (Printable)

A warm dessert with spiced apples and a golden, buttery crumble topping.

# What You'll Need:

→ Apple Filling

01 - 6 medium apples (Granny Smith or Braeburn), peeled, cored, and sliced
02 - 1/4 cup granulated sugar
03 - 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
04 - 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
05 - 1 tablespoon lemon juice
06 - 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

→ Crumble Topping

07 - 1 cup all-purpose flour
08 - 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold and cubed
09 - 1/2 cup light brown sugar
10 - 1/2 cup rolled oats (optional, for extra crunch)
11 - Pinch of salt

# Steps:

01 - Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly butter a 8 x 10-inch baking dish.
02 - In a large bowl, toss the sliced apples with sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon juice, and flour until evenly coated. Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish.
03 - In a separate bowl, mix flour, brown sugar, oats (if using), and salt. Add cold cubed butter and rub in with fingertips until the mixture forms coarse crumbs.
04 - Evenly scatter the crumble topping over the apple filling. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes until the topping is golden brown and the apples are bubbling.
05 - Allow to cool slightly before serving. Serve warm, optionally accompanied by vanilla ice cream or custard.

# Chef’s Tips:

01 -
  • The topping gets impossibly crispy while the apples stay tender underneath, creating this contrast that keeps you reaching for another spoonful.
  • Takes barely twenty minutes of prep work, which means you can have warm crumble on the table before anyone's hungry enough to complain.
  • Tastes even better the next day when the flavors have settled and the whole thing somehow becomes more itself.
02 -
  • Keep your butter genuinely cold straight from the fridge—warm butter won't create that signature crumbly texture, and you'll end up with something more like cake.
  • Don't stir the crumble topping obsessively; once it looks like breadcrumbs, stop and trust it.
  • Watch the oven in those final minutes because the difference between golden and burned happens in about ninety seconds.
03 -
  • Freeze the baking dish for five minutes before adding your crumble topping so the butter stays cold and crispy while it bakes.
  • If your apples release too much liquid, drain some off before adding the crumble—a soggy bottom is the only real mistake you can make here.
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