I don’t know how to say it any other way. I’m a sucker for apple crisp. It’s easy to make –so much simpler than apple pie! It’s also a consistent crowd pleaser, my boys both request and devour it on a regular basis. Nothing makes them quite as happy as walking into the house after school to a freshly baked apple crisp.
Although I have other apple crisp recipes, I created this one because I wanted a crisp recipe that was more like an apple crunch, i.e., a baked fruit dessert with a very crunchy topping. The chopped pecans in this easy apple crisp recipe give the topping a fabulous consistency.
Pecan Apple Crisp
Ingredients
- 6 apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 cup blanched almond flour (not almond meal)
- ⅓ cup coconut sugar
- ¼ teaspoon celtic sea salt
- ½ cup palm shortening
- 1½ cups chopped pecans
Instructions
- Place apples and lemon juice in an 7 x 11 inch baking dish; set aside
- In a food processor, combine almond flour, coconut sugar, and salt
- Pulse in shortening
- Very briefly pulse in pecans
- Sprinkle topping over apples
- Cover with tin foil and bake at 350°F for 40-50 minutes, or until juices are bubbling
- Increase heat to 400°F and bake 8-15 minutes, watching closely, to brown top of crisp
- Serve
This apple crisp recipe was inspired by one in the Pioneer Woman’s book A Year of Holidays. In her New York Times bestseller Ree has a Thanksgiving recipe called Caramel Apple Pie. For an extra decadent treat, top my gluten-free Pecan Apple Crisp with my luscious Caramel Sauce and homemade whipped cream.
Some folks might wonder what a gluten-free, Paleo blogger is doing with a copy of The Pioneer Woman’s book. First, I’m a huge fan of Ree’s, she is an incredible home schooling mom, amazing photographer, and inspiring woman! And her recipes look absolutely delicious. Of course, I can’t eat them as written. However, I love looking at “regular” cookbooks (not for special diets) to see how folks cook.
If you have loads of apples, check out my Healthy Apple Recipes page! My boys love my Baked Apples recipe, it’s a great one for beginners if you want to teach your children how to cook.
If you’ve had enough of apple recipes, and want a taste of summer, pull some peaches out of the freezer and try my Paleo Peach Crisp recipe. Whatever you decide upon, happy baking. Fruit desserts are the best!
Erin says
I used this recipe as inspiration for an apple crisp I took to a work pot-luck (I used butter instead of palm shortening-all else the same). My dessert was selected as the best dessert (I won a $25 gift card!). There were lots of gooey, rich options, but this simple, pure desert won out! Thank you for the recipe!
alli says
I made this last night and it was awesome…actually, I am eating it right now for breakfast as well! I followed the proportions but made the following substitutions out of laziness and/or using what I had on hand:
-grass-fed butter in place of shortening
-mix of sweet and tart apples and did not peel them (added a little cinnamon)
-mix of pecans, walnuts, and pumpkin seeds
-turbinado sugar in place of coconut sugar
-used my hands to mix the topping vs. a food processor
Thank you for the wonderful recipe!
noa says
i am impressed even though you want to sell your cookbooks you share your recipes i am fairly new with this no gluten way of life thanks so much. noa
Debbie says
Are you familiar with Lakanto? If so would you share your opinion.
Shamim says
Sounds good. Can’t wait to try it out :)
pavitrasarala says
For those who are asking about swapping out the palm shortening: https://elanaspantry.com/frequently-asked-questions/substitutions/
Stephanie L says
On the link provided, it does not discuss if substituting coconut oil is OK for shortening.
Elana Amsterdam says
Hi Stephanie,
Thanks for your comment. The only way to find out if that substitution would work is to test it. Unfortunately, I have not done so, therefore don’t know if it will work. If you do will you please stop back by and leave a comment to let us know how it turned out?
Elana
dzeldaz says
I have the same question: Can coconut oil be used instead of palm shortening?
JoanCortez says
Could you use coconut oil instead of Palm oil?
Barbara Royal says
Would it be okay to use coconut oil instead of palm shortening?
Ingrid says
Fall and apples just seem to go together and apple crisp is one of my favorites. Thanks… I’ll be trying this tomorrow :-)