A healthier recipe for apricot crisp, sweetened with pure maple syrup and topped with a crunchy whole wheat oatmeal crumble. Serve it warm with yogurt for breakfast, or top with ice cream for dessert.
You might also love these recipes for rhubarb crumble and custard, maple apple cobbler, and cherry cobbler.
This site contains affiliate links. As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This means that I may make a small commission if you purchase a product using those links. This in no way affects my opinion of those products and services. All opinions expressed on this site are my own.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Easy to Make. There’s really nothing to this recipe, and it’s simple enough for any beginner baker to make.
Healthy-ish. I hesitate to label a recipe as “healthy” since everyone’s nutritional needs and goals are different, and your idea of healthy may not be the same as mine. But I do like that there’s no refined sugar used, with just pure maple syrup as a sweetener. And the whole wheat flour and oats add fiber for more nutritional value, as well as a hearty, wholesome flavor and texture. The crunchy oat topping is almost like a granola, so you can easily serve this for breakfast with Greek yogurt. And while this is certainly not a decadently sweet dessert, my young kids, even with their love of candy and sweet things, didn’t even notice the lack of sugar as they ate some with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude. Today’s recipe will work at any altitude, though.
See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.
Ingredients
- Apricots. Use fresh, ripe apricots that are still firm and not mushy.
- Maple Syrup. You’ll need pure maple syrup (not pancake syrup made with HFCS). I usually use the Kirkland brand from Costco. The syrup is the only sweetener used, unless you choose to add some brown sugar for a sweeter dessert.
- Spices. You’ll need vanilla extract, salt, allspice and cinnamon to add flavor and warmth.
- Whole Wheat Flour + Oats. The combination of the whole wheat flour and oats makes the topping crunchy and crisp, with a wholesome, hearty texture. Use old-fashioned rolled oats, not quick oats or steel cut oats.
- Butter. The butter adds a rich flavor, as well as moistens the crumble topping and makes it crisp as it bakes.
Instructions
Apricot Filling
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven.
- Brush the softened butter into the pie pan or baking dish.
- Cut the apricots in half and remove the pits, then arrange the apricot halves (or chop them into bite sized pieces) in the pie pan (see notes).
- Drizzle the apricots with the maple syrup and vanilla, then sprinkle with the allspice and cinnamon.
Crumble Topping
- In a bowl, combine the flour, oats, salt and cinnamon.
- Add the maple syrup, vanilla and melted butter, and stir until moistened and crumbly. Sprinkle the topping over the apricots.
- Bake the apricot crisp for about 40-45 minutes, until the topping is crisp.
- Let cool for several minutes, then serve the apricot crisp warm with vanilla ice cream.
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!
Frequently Asked Questions
I didn’t peel the apricots, because I don’t mind the peel. But if the peel bothers you, you can blanch the apricots first, then slip off the peel before cutting them.
While I liked the look of the apricot halves with the crumble topping, it’s easier to eat (especially for kids) if you chop the apricots, so I’d actually recommend chopping them instead of leaving them whole as shown in the photos.
This is not intended to be a very sweet dessert, so if you want it sweeter, feel free to add several tablespoons of brown sugar to both the apricots and the crumble topping. If you add sugar, it will likely draw out more juice from the apricots, and you may need to also add a thickener, such as a tablespoon of flour or corn starch, sprinkled over the bottom of the pan or tossed with the apricots.
You Might Also Like
Please check out my Amazon Shop for a curated collection of some of my favorite cake pans from trusted brands, baking tools, ingredients, pretty things and fashion finds. I recommend products that I buy and use every day!
Did you love today’s recipe? Please rate the recipe and let me know in the comments what you thought! Also, be sure to follow Curly Girl Kitchen on Instagram, and tag me when you try one of my recipes so I can see all your delicious creations!
Apricot Crisp with Maple Oat Crumble
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- 9 Inch Pie Pan
Ingredients
Apricot Filling
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
- 6-8 ripe apricots
- 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp ground allspice
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
Crumble Topping
- ¾ cup whole wheat flour
- ¾ cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- ½ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 5 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
Apricot Filling
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven.
- Brush the softened butter into the pie pan or baking dish.
- Cut the apricots in half and remove the pits, then arrange the apricot halves (or chop them into bite sized pieces) in the pie pan (see notes).
- Drizzle the apricots with the maple syrup and vanilla, then sprinkle with the allspice and cinnamon.
Crumble Topping
- In a bowl, combine the flour, oats, salt and cinnamon.
- Add the maple syrup, vanilla and melted butter, and stir until moistened and crumbly. Sprinkle the topping over the apricots.
- Bake the apricot crisp for about 40-45 minutes, until the topping is crisp.
- Let cool for several minutes, then serve warm with vanilla ice cream.
Notes
- I didn’t peel the apricots, but if the peel bothers you, you can blanch the apricots first, then slip off the peel before cutting them.
- While I liked the look of the apricot halves with the crumble topping, it’s easier to eat (especially for kids) if you chop the apricots, so I’d recommend chopping them instead of leaving them whole.
- This is not intended to be a very sweet dessert, so if you want it sweeter, feel free to add several tablespoons of brown sugar to both the apricots and the crumble topping. If you add sugar, it will likely draw out more juice from the apricots, and you may need to also add a thickener, such as a tablespoon of flour or corn starch, sprinkled over the bottom of the pan or tossed with the apricots.
I hope you love this recipe as much as we do!