Peanut Butter Caramel Apple Crisp

Good news for me…

…the lighting kit I bought works really well! I took these photos at 7:30 p.m. last Saturday night (yep, the night the Nor’easter swept over the East coast) and I couldn’t be happier with the appearance of natural light. This opens up so many more hours for me to photograph food – which means no more making dinner in the middle of the day if I want to post it on the blog ;).

Good new for you…

…this apple crisp rocks, and it can should be on the table in front of you tonight.

I had been brainstorming ideas for an apple crisp with peanut butter and caramel for a few weeks before I read Isa Chandra’s post for her Peanut Butter Caramel Apples. I loved the sound of a homemade vegan caramel sauce using only peanut butter and brown rice syrup, so I scrapped the idea of using Trader Joe’s Fleur de Sel Caramel Sauce (which is also fantastic… but not exactly healthy) and instead followed Isa’s lead.

Thinly sliced Granny Smith apples are tossed with lemon juice, arrowroot powder, cinnamon, and a bit of sugar before being drizzled with Isa’s peanut butter caramel sauce and topped with a peanut butter crumble.

Is there anything more heart-warming, comforting, and delicious than warm apple crisp? I’m sure I’ve said the same exact thing about mac & cheese, butternut squash soup, rice pudding, and other cold-weather classics… but on that particular snowy evening in October, this crisp was pretty much bliss-on-a-plate.

The peanut butter caramel sauce-laced apples cook down until soft & sweet and the crumble topping crisps up into a rich crunchy crust; all without any butter or oil.

Topped with So Delicious No Sugar Added Vanilla Bean Coconut Milk ice “cream”, this crisp is a vegan dessert that any butter-loving omnivore will gladly devour.

Ingredients

• 2 lbs peeled, cored, and thinly sliced baking apples (such as Granny Smith), preferably organic, about 4 large apples
• 1 Tbsp arrowroot powder (or cornstarch)
• 1 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp cane sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 2 Tbsp + 1/3 cup creamy natural unsweetened peanut butter, divided
• 2 Tbsp brown rice syrup
• 1/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/3 cup lightly packed brown sugar
• 1/3 cup old fashioned rolled oats
• 1/3 cup roughly chopped roasted unsalted peanuts
• 1/4 tsp salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9 inch pie plate (you could also use an 8 x 8 inch baking pan).
2. In a large bowl, combine the sliced peeled apples, arrowroot, lemon juice, sugar, and cinnamon. Use your hands to combine. Pour apple mixture into the prepared baking dish.
3. In a small nonstick saucepan set over medium-low heat, combine 2 Tbsp peanut butter and brown rice syrup. Heat, stirring slowly but constantly, until the mixture becomes smooth and drippy, about 1-2 minutes; do not let boil. Remove peanut butter caramel from heat and drizzle evenly over the apples.
4. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, rolled oats, chopped peanuts, and salt. Add in the remaining 1/3 cup peanut butter and work it into the dry ingredients using your fingertips. Mixture should resemble coarse sand with pebbles strewn throughout.
5. Evenly distribute the crisp topping over the peanut butter caramel-drizzled apples.
6. Bake for 40 minutes, or until the crisp topping is golden brown. Check about halfway through; if crisp topping is browning too fast, tent with aluminum foil for remainder of baking time.
7. Serve warm topped with vanilla ice cream, or straight from the fridge with Greek yogurt the following morning ;).

Estimated Nutrition per Serving

Please note that these nutrition values are approximate and can vary depending on specific ingredients and portion sizes:

• Calories: 330 kcal
• Total Fat: 14g
  • Saturated Fat: 5g
  • Trans Fat: 0g
• Cholesterol: 15mg
• Sodium: 160mg
• Total Carbohydrates: 48g
  • Dietary Fiber: 4g
  • Sugars: 31g
• Protein: 5g

Keep in mind that these values are estimates and may vary based on the brands and specific ingredients you use. Enjoy your Peanut Butter Caramel Apple Crisp!