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Winter Fruit Crisp

Quick and easy fruit treat with warm buttery oats, sweetened with brown sugar.
Kid friendly
Plate of baked sliced apples with a sweet granola topping.
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Makes: 8 Bars (4 inches x 2 inches)
Nutrition Facts: View label

Ingredients

4 cups diced apples or pears
⅓ cup packed brown sugar
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup old fashioned rolled oats
⅓ cup margarine or butter, softened or melted
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions

  1. Wash hands with soap and water.
  2. Rinse or scrub fresh fruits under running water before preparing.
  3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease an 8x8-inch baking dish.
  4. Arrange fruit in the dish. Mix remaining ingredients and sprinkle over fruit.
  5. Bake until topping is golden brown and fruit is tender, about 30 minutes.
  6. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours.

Notes

  • Use any fresh, frozen or drained canned fruit that you have on hand.
  • Add ½ cup dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, cut apricots).
  • Try plain or vanilla yogurt as a topping and sprinkle with cinnamon. 

 

Comments

Submitted by Shawna Holland on Tue, 03/21/2023 - 14:13

I made this recipe again today using pears and the change in recipe to 1/3 cup of brown sugar, and it was a hit! Super quick recipe and great way to use some pears that were a little too ripe to eat raw. 

Submitted by FHteam on Mon, 03/13/2023 - 14:28

We noticed that cooks and tasters have shared that less brown sugar allows the natural sweetness of the fruit to shine. The recipe has been changed to reduce brown sugar in half, from 2/3 cup to 1/3 cup. Thanks for your comments!

Food Hero team

Submitted by Brooke Robinson on Sun, 03/12/2023 - 21:11

This was a super delicious recipe for an easy homemade dessert! I used 1/3 cup of packed brown sugar and it came out with just the right amount of sweetness, even on top of some yogurt. I used 4 medium apples total, two Gala and two Granny Smith. I also melted the butter in the microwave which made mixing the ingredients a lot easier. 

Submitted by Shawna Holland on Tue, 03/07/2023 - 14:15

This was great simple recipe! I made the recipe with a variety of apples and served the dish at a food bank. A few people commented the recipe could have used half the amount of brown sugar as the apples were pretty sweet! I did have to slightly melt the butter and then mix with the dry ingredients to get the butter to mix in. 10/10! 

Submitted by Lydia Bowman on Wed, 12/02/2020 - 11:17

Should you use a combination of pears and apples, or just pick one or the other?

Submitted by Food Hero team (not verified) on Sun, 12/20/2020 - 18:14

Hi Lydia, we have not tried this recipe with a combination of apple and pear, but I imagine it would be just fine. Let us know what you decided and your thoughts! 

The Food Hero Team

Submitted by kokeshc on Thu, 04/23/2020 - 15:06
This was such an easy and comforting treat to make at the end of the long week. I made a few notes that I think would be helpful for all you future crisp-makers! 4 cups of apples/pears translated to one large Honeycrisp apple and three small/medium green pears for me. I had to improvise with my sugar with what I had in my pantry. Instead of ⅔ cup sugar, I used ⅓ cup of coconut sugar and lightly drizzled honey over top of crisp before putting in the oven. The sweetness was not compromised in the end! Instead of ⅓ cup margarine, I used ⅓ cup of regular butter -- I diced the butter and mixed it with all the other ingredients to distribute evenly. I ended up with some drier spots, but all the moisture from the fruits substantially made up for it. Perhaps massaging the butter in more (or semi-melting it) could work, too. I went through my cupboards and decided to add a 1/4 cup of raisins and sprinkled chia seeds over top before putting in oven (this added nice taste and crunch).
Submitted by aharris on Thu, 11/30/2017 - 16:05

This is my favorite go-to recipe for a quick dessert! I usually use Granny Smith apples. My husband loves it!

Submitted by tierrabonita on Sat, 11/04/2017 - 20:36

Great recipe!  Super fast to make, I am sure no-fail, used up 4 apples I didn't want to go bad, and everyone loved it!  Next time I hope to try pears...and add in some more spices, maybe ground cloves.

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