Mom's Apple Crisp

I am in the middle of a 
sugar/sweetener detox right now but I've been thinking about sweets for the past few hours. Because I know I can't have any I've actually enjoyed thinking about them. Yesterday in my post about food rules I shared that I think it's important to break my rules every once in a while. This crisp is one of those ways I break my food rules. The trick is that I only make it when we have people visiting or my mom makes it when I am home. 


One of my favorite memories of fall from growing up is the mom's apple crisp.  She would make a bunch every fall, either after we had gone apple picking or were having people over for dinner.  It's the perfect combination of tart apples, sweet cinnamon and sugar, crispy oats, and creamy butter.  Our special treat was always having it for breakfast the next morning. But really if you think about it most cereals people eat for breakfast have about the same amount of sugar as the apple crisp and there is fruit in it.  So much better for anyone for breakfast than Lucky Charms and Cinnamon Toast Crunch. 


Mom's Apple Crisp 
Topping:
2 cups rolled oats
1 cup flour
1 1/3 cups brown sugar, packed
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) butter, frozen, cut into bits

Filling:
10 cups apples, peeled, cored, cut into 1/4 inch slices (10 to 12 apples)
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Put the flour, sugar, and butter in the food processor. Pulse until the butter is in pea-size bits. In a large bowl place the oats and stir in the butter, sugar, flour mixture.

In a large bowl (or in the pan) mix together the apples, cinnamon and brown sugar. Put the apples in a 8 inch by 12 inch pan.  Cover evenly with the topping, patting it gently into place.

Bake for about 45 minutes until the top if golden brown and the fruit is bubbling.  Remove from the oven and let it cool.

Question of the Day:  Do you prefer fruit or chocolate desserts?

Usually I go for the fruit, but it has to be from a reliable source. :)