It’s hard to believe it’s fall here in Chile. On one hand, the leaves are falling and turning lovely shades of crimson. However, temperatures are still oddly hovering around 27-28C (high 80s). Being a warm weather lover, I never thought I would say this, but I would be okay with things cooling off. I’ve had my fill.

I could get more into the spirit of all this fall produce flooding the markets like butternut squash, pumpkin, chestnuts, the first persimmons, quinces, and tons of apples. Today at the Vega I counted at least six different varieties of apples: Granny Smith; gigantic red; tiny sour crab apples which they use for jam; Fuji; Golden delicious; and these new ones from Concepción I had never seen before called Braeburn .

I was allured by their shiny auburn-colored skins rubbed with streaks of orange on a pale green background. Their petit size was perfect for snacking. Biting into one, their juicy sweetness dribbled down my chin. I had a flashback to childhood when we used to chug gallons of thick, Apple Cider in autumn from Oregon Dairy.

Back home and unpacking, I realized that I gotten a little too “market happy” with the apples. Now I needed to figure out what to do with them! Apple pie? Nah, too fussy and I was not into a baking project. Something fast and easy. Hmm…and then it hit me. My great grandma Carpenter’s recipe for Apple Crisp.

Much loved throughout Lancaster County, where I grew up, I gobbled up this simple, old-fashioned dessert on many chilly mornings for breakfast. It is delicious warmed through and then covered with whole milk, half-and-half, or with vanilla ice cream. This recipe can be tweaked with an addition of one tablespoon fresh grated ginger tossed with the apples. Major zing. You can also substitute Bartlett pears for the apples and cardamom for cinnamon and make the crisp in individual ramekins. Perfect for a make-ahead dessert for a dinner party.

Recipe: Apple Crisp
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. Baking powder
1 large egg, beaten
4 large Granny Smith apples, peeled and thinly sliced
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Cinnamon for dusting

Preheat the oven to 375 F.
Put the flour, sugar, and baking powder into the bowl of a food processor to combine. While running, use the feed tube to pour the beaten egg into the dry mixture. Process until soft crumbs form. Alternately, you can do this by hand. Reserve.
Put the apples into a 1 ½ quart baking dish. Sprinkle the crumbs on top of the fruit. Drizzle the melted butter on the crumbs and dust with cinnamon.
Bake for 30 minutes, or until Golden brown (top will be crispy).
Serves 6-8