Apple-caramel crisp

Does it get much better than a warm apple-caramel crisp on a cold, windy day?

I don’t think I ever remember the weather changing so drastically from day to day. I swear that as soon as we hit November 1st, the temperatures dropped and this crazy wind that we’ve been having here keeps waking me up in the middle of the night. All I wanted to do today was to cuddle up on the couch with my favorite blanket, a cup of tea and a warm slice of apple cake.

Because I’m not much of a baker and I don’t really like any store-bought baked goods (they’re always way too sweet for my liking and I’m very sensitive to dairy) I whipped up this modified version of an apple crisp. I substituted butter with coconut oil, sugar with coconut palm sugar and added some dairy-free caramel sauce, which really took this dessert to the next level. I didn’t have any full-fat coconut milk and I wasn’t sure if “light” coconut milk that I had in my pantry would work, but it did. The caramel sauce came out absolutely delicious and it was so easy to make, only using a few ingredients.

Baked apple crisp

4 large apples, peeled and sliced
3/4 cup coconut palm sugar
1 cup of flour
pinch of salt
3 oz coconut oil, melted
1 tsp of cinnamon

1. Preheat the oven to 350F degrees, grease a baking dish with coconut oil (I used 10.5 x 8.5 square dish, you can also use a few small individual dishes instead).

2. Arrange your apples in a few layers on your baking dish and sprinkle with 1/4 cup of coconut palm sugar and some cinnamon.

3. Mix the remaining sugar with flour and a pinch of salt. Once combined, pour in melted coconut oil and mix with a fork until crumbs form. If your mixture is a bit dry, add more oil. If it’s too moist and crumbs won’t form, add a bit of flour.

4. Top the apples with the crumbs, sprinkle with some additional cinnamon, place in the preheated oven and bake for about 30-35 minutes or until it’s nicely browned. Top it off with a generous amount of the caramel sauce and serve warm.

Caramel Sauce (dairy-free)
1 can of light coconut milk
1/2 cup of dark brown sugar
pinch of sea salt
a drop of vanilla extract

To make the sauce, add the coconut cream (the thick, creamy part of the coconut milk) and brown sugar to a small sauce pan and cook on a medium heat for about 20 minutes while mixing. Once the sauce bubbles and thickens, take it off the heat and add both vanilla extract and the sea salt. If the sauce becomes a bit thick after a while, you can heat it up in the microwave or on the stove to soften it up before serving. I you’re like me and love that salty-sweet flavor, you can add a bit more sea-salt to create a salty-caramel sauce.