Made with cinnamon-spiced apples and a crunchy oat topping sweetened with maple syrup, this healthy apple crisp has all the cozy flavor of the classic with no refined sugar. It is naturally gluten free, dairy free, and easy enough for a weeknight or holiday crowd!

A baking dish filled with apple crisp topped with oat crumble, with a metal spoon scooping some out, placed on a blue and white cloth.

5 star review

“I made this last weekend and I just have to say that it’s THE tastiest refined-sugar-free apple dessert I have ever made”

– Kelly
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Easy Apple Crumble with Oats and Maple Syrup

This healthy apple crisp has been my favorite fall dessert since I started (very losely) adapting Ina Garten’s old-fashioned apple crisp years ago. The original is incredible but heavy on white sugar, butter, and white flour, so I recreated it with maple syrup, coconut oil, and oat flour instead. The result tastes just as cozy and comforting, but it’s lighter, refined-sugar free, and naturally gluten and dairy free, so I feel good about serving it on weeknights as well as holidays.

The oat topping really is what makes this crisp. Stir the oats, oat flour, salt, cinnamon, maple syrup, and melted coconut oil together until everything looks evenly moist and slightly crumbly, then scatter it over the apples in irregular clumps rather than a smooth layer. Bigger, craggy pieces give you that signature crisp top with deeper pockets of caramelized topping baked in!

The other thing worth knowing is that this is a true crowd-feeding recipe! It makes enough to serve 8 to 10, it can be assembled ahead and baked just before serving, and leftovers are so lovely for a snack or even breakfast the next morning. Serve it warm on its own or with vanilla ice cream (highly recommend!), and if you love this oat topping, my maple oat mixed berry crisp uses the same approach perfect for berry season. And for another easy apple dessert in the same comfort-food lane, my slow cooker apples make a great hands-off topping for yogurt or oatmeal too!

Oval baking dish filled with peeled and sliced apples, placed on a striped kitchen towel with apple peels and an orange on the wooden surface nearby.
A bowl of apple crisp topped with a dollop of whipped cream, with a spoon, sits on a striped cloth; a baking dish of apple crisp is in the background.

Robyn’s Testing Tips for Healthy Apple Crisp with No Sugar

  • Don’t skip the citrus zest and juice in the filling, since when I tested without it the apples tasted flat; the orange and lemon brighten everything and balance the maple sweetness!
  • I make my own oat flour by blending whole rolled oats in a high-speed blender until it forms a coarse flour, which is cheaper than store-bought and works just as well; use certified gluten free oats if that matters to you.
  • This is one of the few desserts I happily eat for breakfast the next morning, so when I make it ahead I scoop leftovers over a bowl of yogurt and call it a meal. Perfection!
  • When I want extra crunch in the topping I add half a cup of chopped pecans or walnuts; it bumps it from “feels healthy” to “tastes a little indulgent” without changing the prep at all.
Two bowls of apple crisp topped with whipped cream sit on a striped cloth, with a larger dish of apple crisp in the background.
A baking dish filled with apple crisp topped with oat crumble, with a metal spoon scooping some out, placed on a blue and white cloth.
5 stars (1 rating)

Healthy Apple Crisp (With Oats)

Developed and tested by A woman with long blonde hair, smiling, holds and pours a bottle of oil in a modern kitchen setting.Robyn Conley Downs
Servings: 10
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 50 minutes
Total: 1 hour 5 minutes
This healthy apple crisp pairs cinnamon apples with a crunchy oat topping sweetened with maple syrup, with no refined sugar, gluten and dairy free.
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Ingredients

  • 5 pounds apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
  • 1 orange, zest grated and juiced
  • 1 lemon, zest grated and juiced
  • ¼ cup pure maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon

For the Topping:

  • 1 ½ cups oat flour
  • 1 cup old-fashioned whole rolled oats
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • ⅓ cup melted coconut oil
  • ⅓ cup pure maple syrup

Equipment

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9×14 baking dish with coconut oil or spray with cooking spray.
  • Combine the apples, orange and lemon zests, orange and lemon juices, ¼ cup maple syrup, and 1 teaspoon cinnamon in the baking dish, stirring well.
  • To make the topping, combine the oat flour, whole oats, salt, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, ⅓ cup maple syrup, and melted coconut oil. Stir until well combined and crumbly. Scatter evenly over the apples.
  • Place the crisp on a sheet pan lined with foil and bake for 50-60 minutes, until the top is brown and the apples are bubbly.

Notes

  • Make sure the oat flour and whole oats are labeled gluten-free for gf diets.
  • Any apple works in this crisp, but I typically use a mix of sweet and tart apples for the best flavor; my go-to combo is half Honeycrisp or Pink Lady for sweetness and half Granny Smith for that tart bite that keeps it from feeling cloying.
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 1 (of 10), Calories: 343kcal, Carbohydrates: 64g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 10g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 124mg, Potassium: 421mg, Fiber: 8g, Sugar: 37g, Vitamin A: 156IU, Vitamin C: 23mg, Calcium: 60mg, Iron: 1mg
Nutrition disclaimer
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