Paleo Apple Crisp (AIP & Nut Free)
This apple crisp is the perfect fall dessert for Thanksgiving! It’s paleo, AIP, vegan, and easy to make.
Paleo & AIP Apple Crisp
Would you believe me if I said that I’ve never made my own apple pie from scratch? It’s true! I don’t know what held me back when I ate gluten, but it’s certainly not for lack of loving apple desserts during the holidays. But let’s be honest… it can be a lot of work to make a grain-free pie crust from scratch, especially when you’re already making an entire Thanksgiving dinner. So when I was craving a paleo and AIP apple dessert to make this holiday season, my mind went straight to a paleo apple crisp!
Apple crisp has all of the flavor and nostalgia of an apple pie, but it’s much easier and equally as delicious in its own right. This crisp is full of healthy fat, easy to use ingredients, and a tart and sweet flavor! I shared this with my parents who get a lot less of my grain-free creations, and they loved it none the less!
The Ingredients For The Paleo Apple Crisp
- Granny Smith Apples: I find granny smith apples to work best for this recipe as they’re a good balance of tart and sweet.
- Shredded Coconut, Coconut Flour & Tapioca Starch: These help form the base and body of the actual crisp. You can sub arrowroot for tapioca starch, but this particular recipe cannot be made coconut free.
- Coconut Oil: Coconut oil helps act as a binder for the crust. I haven’t tried any other fats, but I assume that lard or butter could also be a good option if you tolerate them.
- Maple Syrup: Seeing as these apples are tart, you have to add a little sweetness with the maple syrup. You can also easily sub honey if that’s what you have on hand.
- Lemon Juice & Cinnamon: Lemon helps add a bit more kick to the tartness of the apples and make this whole dessert even more delicious! Cinnamon ties it all together.
How To Make This Paleo Apple Crisp
- Make The Filling: Preheat the oven for 375 F and prepare and 8×8″ baking sheet. Prepare the apples by chopping into large square pieces, discarding the core. Pour the apples into a bowl and combine with 2 tbsp coconut oil, cinnamon and the juice of half a lemon. Scoop the apples into the baking dish and set aside
- Make The Crisp: Make the crisp by combining the shredded coconut, coconut flour, and tapioca starch and mixing well. Add in 1/3 cup of coconut oil, the coconut butter, maple syrup and mix well. Using your hands, evenly spread out the crisp mixture onto the apples, pushing down to spread out.
- Bake & Serve: Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes or until the crisp is golden brown. Serve by itself or with compliant ice cream.
Can you make this recipe coconut-free?
The shredded coconut and coconut flour help form the base and body of the actual crisp, so this particular recipe cannot be made coconut free.
Can you use honey instead of maple syrup?
Yes! You can easily sub honey if that’s what you have on hand.
Can you make this recipe ahead of time?
Yes! Reheat for a few minutes in the oven.
What do you serve it with?
You can serve it with compliant ice cream or AIP caramel sauce (use this, or homemade).
What ice cream brands do you recommend?
You can use any ice cream of your choosing! For AIP/homemade, here are the recipes I recommend:
- Vanilla Ice cream by Food by Mars
- Vanilla ice cream by the Paleo Mom
- Vanilla Ice cream by Squirrel in the Kitchen
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Paleo Apple Crisp (AIP & Nut Free)
- Yield: 5-6 servings 1x
Description
This apple crisp is the perfect fall dessert for Thanksgiving! It’s paleo, AIP, vegan, and easy to make.
Ingredients
- 6 granny smith apples, peeled
- 1/3 cup + 2 tbsp coconut oil, softened
- 1 cup shredded coconut
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1/4 cup coconut butter, softened (also known as coconut mana)
- 1 tbsp tapioca starch
- 3 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- Juice of half a lemon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven for 375 F and prepare and 8×8″ baking sheet
- Prepare the apples by chopping into large square pieces, discarding the core. Pour the apples into a bowl and combine with 2 tbsp coconut oil, cinnamon and the juice of half a lemon. Scoop the apples into the baking dish and set aside
- Make the crisp by combining the shredded coconut, coconut flour, and tapioca starch and mixing well. Add in 1/3 cup of coconut oil, the coconut butter, maple syrup and mix well.
- Using your hands, evenly spread out the crisp mixture onto the apples, pushing down to spread out.
- Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes or until the crisp is golden brown.
- Serve by itself or with compliant ice cream
Notes
All nutritional information are estimations and will vary. Estimations do not include optional ingredients.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 455
- Fat: 31.8g
- Carbohydrates: 44.3g
- Fiber: 7.2g
- Protein: 2g
This recipe first appeared on Unbound Wellness in 2017 and was updated in 2020.
Recipe by Michelle, Unbound Wellness. Photos by Eat Love Eats
This recipe is unreal! So good. I used a bag of organic fresh cranberries and 3 apples (kept the peels on) and added 2 Tbsp of honey (I used honey instead of maple syrup as that what I had) to help cut the tartness, although I love the tartness! The topping is so good, one of the best I’ve tried. Will definitely make again using different types of fruit! Thank you!
Yay! Thank you so much, Alyssa!
New to AIP and really appreciate your recipes..can’t wait to try this..how many apples are used?
Thank you so much! 6 🙂 All of the details are in the recipe card.
Is coconut butter the same as coconut mama?
It is 🙂
I have an instant pot but no oven- would you have any idea of how to translate the time to instant pot?
Thank you!
Where can I find coconut butter? Or is there a substitution?
I get it from health food stores in the nut butter section.
Made this last night for my fam! Thank you for such an easy/YUMMY AIP apple crisp recipe
Thank you so much, Kathleen! So happy you liked it!
I love this recipe! Finally a truly yummy dessert!
Super easy & super yummy!!! Thank you!
Thank you so much, Mari!!!
I’ve made this recipe twice now and I LOVE it. The first time I made it, the top browned a bit too much. It was still good but I was careful the next time I made it to not overcook. I lowered the oven temp to 365 and start checking the progress around 35 minutes. 35-40 minutes seems to be the sweet spot using the lower cooking temp. Thank you for sharing this recipe. The top crumble is SO good and the apples are a perfect compliment 🙂
Thank you!!
Thanks do much. We really enjoyed it. I’m new to AIP so this was a real treat.
This looks delicious! I just picked a bunch of apples. Can I make a few of these and freeze them? Would I cook it before or after freezing? Thanks!
This was soooo good! I made it for some non-AIP friends for a game night and it was a big hit with everyone. Thanks for the recipe!
Thank you SO much Holly!! I’m so happy you liked it!
Delicious!!! It only took 30 minutes to bake to perfection.
Agreed! I checked mine at 32 min and it was already burned. Next time I will change the temp to 350.
This was amazing! I actually substituted a mix of berries about to go bad in the fridge and rhubarb. So good, especially with homemade coconut milk whipped cream.
LOVE THAT! Thank you so much, Vanessa! So happy you liked it 🙂
This looks amazing and can’t wait to try making it. Could I use ghee instead of coconut butter for the topping?