VeganMoFo Day Six: Refined Sugar-free Apple Crisp

Today was such a nice day. It finally stopped raining and the weather was beautiful. I went for a drive through what is probably one of the prettiest areas in the state of Maine, at least in autumn. The leaves are all in their full colors, and it's just so gorgeous. I'm so thankful I live in New England.

Usually, I would have made at least 7,000 apple desserts by this time in fall, but for some reason I haven't this year. I guess since I've been trying to avoid refined sugars, the thought of baking just doesn't sound that appealing to me. But I'd been craving apple crisp for a while, which seemed unfortunate because I didn't think it'd be possible to use liquid sweeteners for something crisp. However, this turned out fabulously. I really would recommend using brown rice syrup, as maple syrup and agave would probably be too liquidy (you could try reducing the amount, but don't expect it to be perfect...); I'm probably very biased though, because brown rice syrup is basically the love of my life.

NOTE: I made this again later using an equal amount of maple syrup instead of the brown rice syrup, and it worked perfectly! Brown rice syrup is still my favorite, but if you don't have any on hand, that's not a problem at all.

(Refined Sugar-Free) Apple Crisp

• 5 apples, either chopped into 1-inch chunks or sliced (most recipes say sliced, but I like chopped better)
• 1 1/2 cup oats
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
• 1/4 cup pecans or walnuts, chopped
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil (or other mild-tasting oil..or maybe melted coconut oil if you want that flavor)
• 1/2 cup brown rice syrup (or other liquid sweetener)
• 1/4 cup apple cider or water

1) Preheat oven to 375°. Lightly oil a 10x10" casserole dish.

2) In a small bowl, combine oats, flour, coconut flakes, pecans, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Add vanilla, oil, and brown rice syrup and stir until completely combined (if it still won't stick together, add more syrup, one tablespoon at a time).

3) Place apples in dish. Using your hands, crumble the oat-syrup topping over the apples. Pour apple cider evenly over dish.

4) Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the juice is bubbling and the topping is crispy. Let cool before serving. Always good with a scoop of vanilla vegan ice cream or some vegan whipped cream!