This toffee apple crumble is the ultimate fall and winter dessert made with juicy cinnamon-spiced apples and toffee chunks baked until caramelized and tender, topped with a buttery hazelnut oat crumble topping. It's cozy, nutty, and perfect for serving warm with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream.
The hazelnuts add a toasty crunch that balances the soft apples and caramel-like toffee bits, creating a rich, gooey dessert that's just as good for a dinner party as it is for a Sunday night treat.
Try this apple and blueberry crisp variation, pear cobbler, apple crumble bars, or apple crumble tart for similar flavor profiles!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
Toffee pockets - melty, caramel-like bits are scattered throughout the apples and melt into pools of gooey flavor.
Easy to prepare - no special ingredients or equipment needed, just a couple of mixing bowls and your hands!
Perfect for gatherings - casserole-type desserts are simple to put together and are always a great option to feed a crowd.
Ingredients
- Apples. A mix of granny smith and gala, Braeburn, honeycrisp or pink lady is my favorite combination for a crisp!
- Brown sugar. The main sweetener for the apples and crumble topping.
- Cinnamon. This coats the apples and provides the base level of spice.
- Toffee bits. These little morsels create pockets of gooey caramel flavor in every bite.
- Flour. Helps to thicken the apple filling, and creates the base of the crumble topping.
- Oats. Add texture and chewiness to the crumbly, crispy topping.
- Unsalted butter. Brings the crumble together and creates crisp texture during baking.
- Hazelnuts. Adds toasty crunch and earthy flavor to the toffee apple crumble.
See recipe card for full ingredients list and quantities.
Substitutions and Variations
- Use pecans, almonds, or walnuts, instead of hazelnuts, or omit the nuts completely.
- Swap pear for apple for a more earthy, subtle version.
- Use quick cooking oats instead of rolled oats in a pinch.
- Add a pinch of nutmeg, clove, and or cardamom for extra spice.
- Use store-bought toffee bits to make it easy, or try your hand at homemade toffee pieces!
How to Make This Recipe
One: Toss the apple chunks in lemon juice, then brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon. Mix in the toffee bits.
Two: Crumble together the butter, brown sugar, flour, oats, salt, and hazelnuts until combined and crumbly.
Three: Add the toffee apples to a buttered casserole dish.
Four: Top with the hazelnut oat crumble and bake until the apples are soft and the topping is lightly browned. Cool slightly, then serve with ice cream!
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Expert Tips
- Use a mix of apples for the best texture and flavor combination.
- Cut the apples into even pieces so they bake up evenly.
- If the topping browns too quickly, cover loosely with foil during baking.
- The apples will continue to bake and soften as it cools, so remove it from the oven when they are still slightly firm.
- Check for apple doneness by inserting a sharp knife into the apple portion. It should slide in and out with very little give.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, assemble the toffee apple crisp up to 24 hours ahead, cover and refrigerate. Add a bit of extra bake time if baking straight from the fridge.
Yes, freeze unbaked, tightly covered in plastic wrap and foil, and freeze for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen (uncovered), adding 15-20 minutes of extra bake time.
Storage
Store the toffee apple crumble covered in the fridge for 4 days. Reheat in a 350℉ oven for 10-15 minutes until warm, or heat individual servings in the microwave.
What to Know When Cooking with The Cozy Plum
- All recipes are created with Diamond Crystal kosher salt, the least salty variety of kosher salt. If using Morton's, you'll need to cut the amount of salt in half as it's 2x as salty. This will be the same for sea salt. Please do not use table salt.
- Switch between Cups vs Metric using the toggle on the recipe card. Baking by weight using a digital scale will always produce the most accurate results.
- Scale the recipe using the '1X' '2X' '3X' buttons on the recipe card. Note that this does not make an adjustment for baking times, only quantities.
📖Recipe
Hazelnut and Toffee Apple Crumble
Equipment
- 1.5 qt baking dish or 9x9" pan or similar size
Ingredients
Apple Filling
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 lbs apples* about 6-7 medium apples
- ½ lemon squeezed
- ¼ cup light brown sugar packed
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ cup toffee bits
Crumble Topping
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 1 cup light brown sugar packed
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup roughly chopped hazelnuts
Instructions
Apple Filling
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ and rub the butter all over the bottom and insides of a 1.5 qt baking dish (9x9” or similar size will work).2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Peel and core the apples, then cut them into about 1” sized cubes. You can also slice them into 1cm slices, if you like that shape better.2 lbs apples*
- Add the apples to a large mixing bowl and toss with the ½ squeezed lemon (no seeds)!½ lemon
- Sprinkle over the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon and toss to combine. Add in the toffee bits and fold them in. Pour the apples into the prepared pan (scrape everything out of the bowl!) and spread evenly.¼ cup light brown sugar, 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ cup toffee bits
Crumble Topping
- Add all of the ingredients to a mixing bowl and use a fork or your fingertips to combine until you have a mixture of small to medium sized crumbles.1 cup all-purpose flour, 1 cup rolled oats, 1 cup light brown sugar, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ cup unsalted butter, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt, ½ cup roughly chopped hazelnuts
- Pour it over top of the apples and gently spread it out with your fingers (don’t pack it down).
- Bake for 35-45 minutes until the apples are tender and top is golden. Tent with a piece of foil if the top is getting too brown.
- Let the crumble rest for about 10 minutes before scooping and serving (preferably with some vanilla ice cream).
Susan says
What size pan would you use for 10 servings? Would you bake at the same temperature and for the same amount of time?
Callan Wenner says
Hi Susan - this just made me realize I had the serving size wrong on the recipe card! Yikes! A 9x9 pan, as listed, provides 8 servings (I've just updated this on the recipe card). If you'd like larger size servings and some leftovers, double the recipe and go for a 9x13" pan. Bake time will be roughly the same, but may need an additional 5-10 minutes! Same temp!
Callan Wenner says
The toffee bits...ohh the toffee bits. Adds extra gooeyness and caramel flavor to the apples and it's just so good!