Apple Cranberry Crisp

When we have dinner at Architect’s house, it’s always my turn to bring dessert.  We have a “who brings what” rotation going and it revolves around the traveling salad bowl.  When I host dinner, the bowl stays with me and I know to bring the salad (in the traveling bowl) to the next dinner, and so on.

A simple little system.

Anyway, I wanted to make a light dessert.  I had apples to use and I’d been craving cranberries, perhaps a nod to the imminent crisp, autumn weather (although it’s been downright balmy in the northeast lately).  I love cranberries…maybe because they are a shade of red, my favorite color.   So, thinking about coupling apples and cranberries, how about a Apple Cranberry Crisp?  A quick search revealed this little jewel:

 

 

And, even though it’s an Emeril recipe, I found it on marthastewart.com so it was my immediate choice.

As we all know, I adore Martha.

The sweet notes of the cranberry, the tanginess of the orange, the wholesomeness of the oats, and the complexity and interest of the spices combine nicely to give your taste buds a fine how-to-you-do with each bite! I thought about replacing the butter and sugar crumble with a healthier wheat-germ version and I’m glad I didn’t…sometimes a recipe (and a girl) just needs butter and sugar!   A dear Irish friend suggested I drizzle fresh cream on top just before serving…it was a lovely suggestion and the cream added a perfect, rich, velvety touch.  This recipe is a must try…perfect for a pot-luck dinner contribution.

I chose to use organic frozen cranberries and they worked very well in this recipe.

Apple Cranberry Crisp

Emeril’s Recipe posted on marthastewart.com

Ingredients

Unsalted butter, for baking dish
6 sweet, firm apples, such as Gala or Braeburn, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch dice
12 ounces cranberries (fresh or frozen)
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon grated orange zest, plus 1 tablespoon fresh orange juice (I used a little more)

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish (I used a deep pie dish).  In a large bowl, combine apples, cranberries, sugar, flour, vanilla, and orange zest and juice. Transfer to baking dish and sprinkle with topping.  Bake until topping is browned and juices are thick and bubbling around edges, 55 to 60 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes before serving.  Drizzle on heavy cream.

Crisp Topping

Ingredients
6 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
2/3 cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
2/3 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Using an electric mixer, beat on low until coarse crumbs form.

I made this again for my cream-suggesting Irish friend who shared it with his friends….the deliciousness enjoyed in yet another Pennsylvania county.