Apple Butterscotch Crisp

配料

filling

2½ pounds (1.15 kilograms)

baking apples (about 5 or 6 medium; my favorites are Mutsu, Granny Smith, Golden Delicious, or a mix thereof)

Juice of ½ lemon

1 cup (215 grams) packed dark-brown sugar

¼ cup (60 grams) water

½ teaspoon flaky sea salt, plus more to taste

2 tablespoons (30 grams) unsalted butter, cold is fine

¾ cup (170 grams) heavy cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

topping

½ cup (4 ounces, or 115 grams) unsalted butter, melted

½ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ cup (55 grams) packed dark-brown sugar

¼ cup (50 grams) granulated sugar

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¾ cup (75 grams) old-fashioned rolled oats

¾ cup (85 grams) chopped pecans

¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons

(115 grams) all-purpose flour

Vanilla ice cream, to serve (not optional, sorry)

步骤

Heat the oven to 400°F (205°C).

Prepare the apples: Peel, halve, and core the apples; then cut the halves into 1-inch-thick wedges. Toss them in a large bowl with the lemon juice, and set aside while you make the butterscotch.

Make the butterscotch: In a 12-inch heavy skillet, stir together the brown sugar, water, and salt. Turn the heat to medium-high and cook, without stirring, until it's dark brown and smells caramelized, about 7 to 8 min-utes. Do not fret if it smokes; this is par for the course with butterscotch.

Reduce the heat to medium, and carefully (it's going to sizzle dramatically) whisk in the butter, and then the cream, being sure to mix everything well into the corners of the pan, and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes. Add the vanilla. You'll have a scant 1½ cups of butterscotch sauce. Remove from the heat just long enough to ladle half of it carefully into a spouted dish or bowl for later, and set that portion aside.

Parcook the apples: Keeping the heat at medium, add the apples to the remaining butterscotch in the pan, and cook, stirring frequently, until the apples begin to soften and become translucent, but aren't fully cooked, about 12 minutes.

If your skillet is ovenproof, you can keep the apples and butterscotch in it (but I prefer to proceed in a more snug dish). If it's not, transfer everything to a 2-quart baking dish; a deep-dish pie pan will work, too.

Make the topping: Mix all of the topping ingredients in a large bowl until the butter is evenly dispersed and the mixture is rubbly. Sprinkle the topping over the apples, and bake until the apples are tender, their juices visibly bubbling, and the topping is a light, nutty brown, about 20 minutes.

Let it cool, if you can bear it, for 10 to 15 minutes before digging in.

To serve: Scoop the crisp into bowls and top with ice cream and a drizzle of the reserved butterscotch sauce. If your butterscotch sauce has cooled and firmed up, you can warm it up quickly in the microwave—check every 10 seconds, as it warms and bubbles up quickly—or in a small saucepan on the stove.