Dutch Oven Apple Crisp
Apples, oats, and brown sugar baked under coals. A car-camping dessert that feeds eight.
- calories
- 560
- weight
- 7.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 75
- protein
- 5 g
- serves
- 8, scales
- prep
- 15 min
- cook
- 45 min
- total time
- 60 min
- water
- none
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dessert
- Dutch oven
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Vegetarian
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Needs a cooler
- Basic
Ingredients
| Apples | 6 | firm ones, granny smith or honeycrisp |
|---|---|---|
| Cinnamon | 2 tsp | |
| Nutmeg | 2 tsp | |
| Quick oats | 3 cups | |
| All-purpose flour | 1 cup | |
| Brown sugar | 2 cups | |
| Baking powder | 1 tsp | |
| Salt | 1 tsp | |
| Butter | 1 cup | melted; shelf-stable ghee works and does not need a cooler |
Method
- Build a fire and let it burn down to coals while you prep. You want about 25 coals total for a 350 degree oven.
- Core and slice the apples. Toss the slices with the cinnamon and nutmeg in a pot or bag.
- Melt the butter, then stir it into the oats, flour, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt until the mix clumps.
- Press half the oat mixture into the bottom of a 12-inch dutch oven and about an inch up the sides.
- Spread the apples over that layer. Cover them completely with the rest of the oat mixture.
- Lid on. Put 8 coals under the oven and 17 on the lid. Bake about 45 minutes.
- Check at 40 minutes. It is done when the top has browned and a knife goes through the apples without resistance.
Coal placement is the whole recipe. Most of the heat goes on the lid, not underneath, because a crisp browns from above and the bottom crust will scorch if you stack coals under it. Eight below and seventeen on top holds a 12-inch oven near 350 for about 45 minutes without touching it.
The oat layer does double duty as base and topping, which is why there is no separate pastry to make in the dirt. Pressing half of it up the sides keeps the apple juice off the cast iron, so cleanup is a scrape rather than a soak. Ghee swaps in for butter at the same volume and skips the cooler entirely.
Packing
Combine the oats, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in one gallon bag at home, and the cinnamon and nutmeg in a small jar. Apples and butter ride in the cooler. Ghee instead of butter means no cooler at all.
Variations
- Swap in a 10-inch dutch oven with two thirds of everything. Same coals, same time.
- Dried apple slices rehydrated in hot water for 20 minutes replace fresh apples if you are packing in.
- A cup of dried cranberries in with the apples cuts the sweetness.
https://www.boyscouttrail.com/content/recipe/apple_crisp-1345.asp