Apple Brown Betty

Whenever Grandma reached the end of a loaf of bread, she would crumble that last bit into crumbs and add them to her collection in the freezer. She did this to ensure that she always had some on hand for pudding, turkey dressing, or other recipes. 

She instilled this habit in me, but I must not use them as often as Grandma did because mine tend to pile up. 

It was time to put them to good use. As luck would have it, I also had a variety of apples in the fridge drawer that had seen better days.

A bounty of crumbs and apples meant that the time was right to test Apple Brown Betty. I have to admit that I was a little hesitant. Even though the recipe only had six ingredients and promised to be easy to throw together, it didn't sound exciting to me. I knew my husband would be happy though. Like Grandma, he is a rabid fan of all things apple.  

How to Make Apple Brown Betty

The first order of business was to prepare the apples, but the instructions were not very instructive. After I peeled them, I wasn't sure what to do next. 

 Should I slice them? Dice them? Shred them? As usual, I ended up relying on my friend Google for advice. I found a variety of recipes titled Apple Brown Betty. One used sliced apples, but the rest diced them into large chunks. 

I could do that, and I had the perfect tool. 

Next, I melted the butter and combined the cinnamon, sugar, and salt. 

The only thing left was to layer it all in a dish. Crumbs . . . 

apples . . .

cinnamon sugar . . . 

and repeat. 

All of that was topped with a drizzle of butter that didn't seem to be enough.  

I was surprised that the instructions said to cover the dish, but covering it seemed to help cook the apples without over-browning the crumbs. The foil came off during the last 10 minutes, and the crumbs were toasty brown. 

The Verdict

Do you know what happens when your expectations are low? They are almost always exceeded. Such was the case with Apple Brown Betty. Then again, it's probably hard to go wrong with apples, cinnamon, and sugar. Served warm and topped with ice cream, it reminded me of my husband’s favorite, Apple Crisp, but the crumbs were even crispier--almost like cinnamon toast.

The only quibble I had was that the apples were slightly too crunchy for my liking. Next time, I’ll cook the dish a little longer before uncovering it or cut the apples into smaller chunks.  

The question is--will there be a next time? I think so. As I said, the bread crumbs do pile up, and this is a simple dessert that’s as tasty as it is easy. If you have crumbs and apples, give it a try.