Nothing spells comfort like the combination of spicy cinnamon and sweet apples! One of the healthiest, fruit-centric desserts you can whip up is a baked apple crumble, with a thick layer of juicy apples and a crunchy whole grain topping. Every delicious bite is packed with fiber and nutrients.
Ingredients:
Filling
4 large apples, peeled, cored, sliced
¼ cup orange juice
½ teaspoon cinnamon
Crumb Topping
2/3 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 tablespoons soft dairy-free margarine spread
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. To make filling: Toss apple slices, orange juice and cinnamon together and arrange in a 10-inch pie dish.
3. To make crumb topping: Stir oats, whole wheat flour, cinnamon and brown sugar together. Mix in margarine spread with a fork to make a crumbly dough. Sprinkle crumb topping over apple filling.
4. Place dish in oven and bake for about 1 hour, until topping is golden brown and apples are tender yet firm.
5. Remove from oven and serve while warm.
Makes 8 servings
Nutrition Information per Serving: 137 calories, 2 g protein, 26 g carbohydrate, 13 g, sugar, 4 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 4 g fiber, 35 mg sodium
Images by Sharon Palmer
About the author: Sharon Palmer, RDN, The Plant-Powered Dietitian™, is an award-winning food and nutrition expert, journalist, and editor. She is author of The Plant-Powered Diet: The Lifelong Eating Plan for Achieving Health, Beginning Today (The Experiment, 2012) and Plant-Powered for Life: Eat Your Way to Lasting Health with 52 Simple Steps & 125 Delicious Recipes (The Experiment, 2014). Sharon also is editor of Environmental Nutrition, nutrition editor of Today’s Dietitian, blogger for The Plant-Powered Blog, and publisher of her monthly The Plant-Powered Newsletter. Living in the chaparral hills overlooking Los Angeles with her husband and two sons, Sharon enjoys visiting her local farmers market, gardening, and cooking for friends and family.