Jasper White’s Apple Crunch

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What to do with the fruits of your apple picking labor? Here’s a handy recipe for apple crunch from the Summer Shack‘s Jasper White. He may have written the book on seafood – literally (and repeatedly) – but he’s certainly no slouch in the dessert department. He uses three different varieties of apples so you can toss in whatever kind you plucked from the trees (or picked up from the farmer’s market).

Details

Servings: 6-8

Ingredients

for the topping:
  • 1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
  • 3/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 1/2 cup rolled oats
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 8 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes, plus 1 additional tablespoon for greasing the pan
for the filling:
  • 4 large Granny Smith or Greening apples
  • 2 large Macintosh apples
  • 2 large Golden Delicious, Gravenstein, Empire, Baldwin or Macoun apples
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • Juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 1/2 cup apple cider (or apple juice)
  • 2 tablespoons all purpose flour

Directions

Working Ahead You can make the crunch earlier in the day and reheat it slowly (300ºF for 20 minutes) before serving. Equipment You will need an 8 x 11-inch baking dish (glass or ceramic), a sheet pan, a couple mixing bowls, a sharp paring knife and a rubber spatula.
  1. Adjust oven racks to the middle positions and pre-heat the oven to 350° F. Spread the pecans on a baking sheet and toast for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool. Butter the baking dish and set it aside.
  2. Combine the flour, brown sugar, oats, salt, cinnamon and nuts in a large mixing bowl and toss well. Add the chilled butter pieces and rub them into the dry ingredients with your fingertips until the mixture is crumbly. Set aside in a cool place.
  3. Peel and core the apples then slice the apples 1/2-inch thick. Place them in a large mixing bowl and toss them with the sugar, lemon juice, cider and flour. Turn the apples into the baking dish and cover evenly with the topping.
  4. Bake until the topping is brown and the filling is bubbly, about 1 hour. Remove from the oven and cool 15 minutes. Spoon the crunch into bowls with the crunch topping on top and serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

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