SKILLET CARAMEL APPLE CRUMBLE
I had to try out my gorgeous birthday present from my son yesterday and this was the perfect recipe to test. Utterly rich and decadent caramel sauce gets full marks. (original recipe from The New York Times but I substituted fresh apples with tinned pie apples and a few others as indicated in recipe below)
- For Caramel sauce:
- 2 cups sugar (I used light brown sugar, takes longer to melt though, but it works…eventually)
- ¾ cup butter, diced
- 1 cup heavy cream (I used normal cream)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla essence or vanilla bean paste
- 1 teaspoon salt
- For the apple filling:
- 6 medium cooking apples like Granny Smith (peeled, core, cut into 2 cm slices) or a tin of pie apples
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
- pinch of cloves
- pinch of salt
- For the topping:
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup old fashioned oats
- ⅓ cup chopped pecans (I used walnuts), optional
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter, softened
Make the caramel sauce. Add sugar and ¼ cup water to a saucepan and stir to combine. Add the butter and set over medium-high heat, but DO NOT STIR. Cook, without stirring, until the butter and sugar have melted completely and started to bubble, 4 to 5 minutes. With light brown sugar the crystals are bigger so it takes longer.
After the mixture has begun to brown at the edges, use a heatproof spatula to carefully stir it occasionally until it is deep golden brown and beginning to smoke just slightly, about 4 to 5 minutes. Do not walk away from the pan during this process as the caramel will go from perfectly golden to burned in moments.
When the mixture is deep golden brown, remove the pan from the heat, and carefully whisk in the heavy cream. The mixture will expand and sputter before turning into a smooth sauce. Add vanilla and salt. If the caramel is at all lumpy, return the pan to the stove on low heat and whisk until smooth. You should have about 2 cups. Carefully pour the caramel into a heat-safe container to cool.
Prepare the filling. Heat oven to 180°C and set oven rack in the centre. Combine the prepared apples with lemon juice, spices and salt in a bowl and stir to combine. Drizzle ½ cup of caramel sauce over the top and stir through. Scrape the apples with all the sauce and juices I to a 23cm oven safe skillet (I did spray mine with cook & spray even if it’s got a non-stick coating on inside).
Make the topping. In the same bowl that had the apple mixture, combine the flour, oats, nuts, sugar and salt. Stir until well combined then add the butter and mash into the dry ingredients with your fingers until crumbs form. Sprinkle the topping over the apples. Bake until the topping is golden and the juices bubbling. About 40 to 50 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream and more warm caramel sauce. Store remaining sauce in air tight container in the fridge for about a week. It can be rewarmed for later use in a saucepan over low heat.
Recipe and photo: Elsabie Templeton
