Honey Pretzel and Caramel Apple Crisp

Gathering the family and venturing off to the local apple orchards and farmers markets just might be a perfect way to spend a beautiful autumn day. Our favorite is the Belkin Family Lookout Farm in Natick, MA. This picturesque farm lets you pick everything from apples, to pumpkins of all sizes, and pears. Take a peek at their website for the perfect times to pick fruits. https://www.lookoutfarm.com  Don’t let the fun stop at the fruit picking, getting creative with all the scrumptious apples you spent the afternoon gathering can make for a weekend of excitement in the kitchen for the entire family.

Here’s my twist on an all American classic.

Recipe Overview:

For this recipe we are ditching the all purpose flour and using honey pretzels instead. Think about the salt from the pretzels, as it melts into the caramels and the sweet apple mixture; this is heaven and awesome for your tastebuds. I tossed about 25 Rold Gold honey wheat pretzel twists in a food processor, and pulsed them for about one minute, this yields 1 cup of pretzel flour.  https://www.fritolay.com/snacks/product-page/rold-gold/rold-gold-honey-wheat-braided-pretzel-twists  The consistency of this pretzel flour will obviously be more course than an all purpose flour, but will mix beautifully with the sugar and cold butter for that perfect crumble topping we expect in an apple crisp.

I know we’ve all seen those highly addictive bags of Kraft caramels that are everywhere during the autumn months. Grab a bag, actually grab 2 because if you’re like me you’ll be snacking on them all season. I used about 15 caramel pieces for this recipe. Using a large and very sharp knife, give the caramels a rough chop just to make them a bit smaller in size.  Nothing too complicated, remember the caramel will melt into the pretzel mixture so don’t fuss too much about the chopping part.

https://www.myfoodandfamily.com/brands/caramels

 I used about 5 medium Macintosh apples because the soft flesh of this particular apple makes it a perfect choice for baking.  After they were washed, I removed the core, left the skin on, and sliced them on the thin side; they’ll bake more evenly this way. Last note I will leave you with before we start on this recipe is to make sure your butter is very cold before adding it to the pretzel and sugar mixture. A well-made crumb should be firm yet tender, and chewy, with big chunks—like granola. The best way to achieve this is to use cold cubed butter.

Serves 4-6.

Ingredients:

• 5 medium apples washed, cored, and sliced (about 3 1/2 cups)
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 15 caramel cubes, chopped
• 1 cup pretzel flour, (25 to 30 honey pretzel twists after processed in food processor)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup cold butter, cut into cubes

 Method:

Preheat oven to 375 F degrees. Butter a 9×13 baking dish, or spray with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

Place the sliced apples in a large mixing bowl, toss with the lemon juice and cinnamon until the apples are nicely coated and spread the mixture into a greased baking pan. Next, evenly spread the chopped caramel pieces over the apples.

Place the pretzel flour, sugar, and butter in a bowl and rub together with your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

Spread pretzel crumbles evenly over the caramel and apples. Bake at 375° for bake for 35 minutes, until the topping is a deep golden color.

Serve this pretzel crisp freshly baked and warm. To store it, place a dry paper towel over the crisp, cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap or a fitted lid to keep it air-tight. This can keep in the refrigerator for up to a week, although if your family is like mine, I guarantee it won’t last 2 days.

Print

Honey Pretzel and Caramel Apple Crisp

Prep 25 mins

Cook 35 mins

Total 60 mins

Author Catherine Varitek

Yield 6-8 servings

Salty pretzels, gooey caramel, and apples make this a perfect crisp for the beautiful upcoming fall days.

Ingredients

• 5 medium apples cored, and sliced (about 3 1/2 cups)
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice 
• 1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 15 caramel cubes chopped
• 1 cup pretzel flour, (25 honey wheat pretzel twists after processed in food processor)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cold butter, cut into small cubes

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 F degrees. Butter a 9×13 baking dish, or spray with non-stick cooking spray.
2. In a large mixing bowl, toss the sliced apples, lemon juice, and cinnamon together until the apples are nicely coated.
3. Spread the apple mixture into the greased baking pan.
4. Evenly spread the chopped caramel pieces over the apples.
5. In a small bowl, combine the pretzel flour, sugar and cold butter together.
6. Using your clean hands, work the butter into the flour mixture with your fingers until it forms large crumbles.
7. Spread pretzel crumbles evenly over the caramel and apples.
8. Bake at 375° for 35 minutes until golden brown and bubbly.

Courses Dessert

Cuisine American