When life hands you apples......

When life hands you apples.....make APPLE CRISP!!!

One of the great benefits of growing up in Carlisle, Pennsylvania was that we were surrounded by farms. Many were fruit orchards and in fact, we had an apple tree in our yard. Every year my mom would have my brother Jimmy and I go pick apples for apple crisp. The goal in this endeavor was two-fold. Number one, it provided us with a yummy dessert for dinner that night and number two, it occupied my hyperactive, pre-ADHD diagnosis days brother Jimmy, and got him out of her hair for awhile and wore him out at the same time. You see Jimmy didn't just pick apples, he proceeded to climb that tree as though he were scaling Mt. Kilimanjaro, complete with ropes and frequent stops to declare himself "King of World." I, being his roly-poly sister, kept my feet on the ground and simply picked up the apples he threw down. Of course being the snotty little brother he was, he also used me for target practice. Don't worry, I got him back. Anywho, my mom made the best apple crisp in the world! I remember waking up one night after she made it to find a strange light coming from the kitchen. I walked in to find the same little brother with a kitchen chair pulled up to the open fridge, large serving spoon in hand as he shoveled apple crisp into his face as fast as he could go. Yeah, he was that kind of kid. Oh, and let's get something straight right now before I go any further....apple crisp is not apple crisp without oats in the streusel. Sorry, that's just the way it is. Trust me once you've eaten it you will thank me. Now, go buy the best vanilla ice cream you can find, a bunch of apples, some oats and get ready for heaven in a bowl!

Shelley's Mom's Apple Crisp

2 1/2 pounds medium Granny Smith and Golden Delicious apples (about 5 or 6), peeled, cored, and sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 to 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup uncooked rolled oats
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (1/2 stick), cut into small pieces, plus more for coating the dish

Heat the oven to 350°F.  Lightly coat an 8-by-8-inch baking dish with butter. Combine the apples, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon of the salt in a large bowl and toss to coat. Place the apple mixture in the prepared baking dish and set aside. Using the same bowl as for mixing the apples, mix together the brown sugar, oats, flour, and remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt until evenly combined. With your fingertips, blend in the butter pieces until small clumps form and the butter is well incorporated. This takes about 2 minutes, any longer than that the heat from your fingers will melt the butter and it won't clump as much so the less you mess with it the better. Sprinkle the topping evenly over the apples and bake until the streusel is crispy and the apples are tender, about 50 to 60 minutes. Let cool on a rack at least 30 minutes before serving. I like cold vanilla ice cream or whipped cream on mine....YUM!