Apple Betty with Almond Cream

Halloween week. I made caramel apples again for the neighborhood children—the second year of what has now become a tradition, which means it only required one year to become a tradition, which is how traditions work when they come from the right place. The right place is: you did it last year and it meant something, so you do it again, and by doing it again you make it permanent, and permanent things become tradition, and tradition is the structure you build around love so it doesn't disperse.

This year I made caramel apples and also a batch of divinity candy—the old-fashioned kind, the white candy that requires hot sugar syrup poured into beaten egg whites, that you drop by spoonful onto wax paper to harden, that is extremely difficult to make in Alabama humidity because divinity absorbs moisture from the air and will not set if the air has too much water in it, which Alabama air almost always does. But October has dry days, and this was a dry October evening, and I made divinity that set perfectly, marble-white and sweet and slightly crispy on the outside and soft in the middle, the texture of something my grandmother used to make and that I associate with every good October of my childhood. Bernice made divinity at Halloween. I have not made it since she got sick. I made it this year because the air was dry and because something said: make it. Make it now. Before you forget how. Before the knowledge leaves with her.

I took a box to the nursing home Saturday. The aide said Mama had had a hard few days. I sat with her and put a piece of divinity in her hand—she can still eat soft things—and she turned it in her fingers and put it in her mouth and her face went to a place I couldn't follow her, some room in her memory where divinity means something specific and good, and she smiled. Not at me. At the candy. At the place the candy took her. That was enough. That is more than enough.

After I got home from the nursing home that Saturday — after Bernice smiled at that piece of divinity and went somewhere I couldn’t follow — I stood in my kitchen and didn’t want the day to end. I wanted to keep my hands in something warm and sweet and old. Apple Betty is exactly that kind of recipe: breadcrumbs and butter and sliced apples, the kind of thing that has no flashy moment, just a slow oven and a good smell and a result that tastes like it has always existed. The almond cream on top is the only flourish, and even that feels like something a grandmother would approve of. I made this the following Sunday, and it helped.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 45 min | Total Time: 1 hr 5 min | Servings: 8

Ingredients

6 medium apples (such as Granny Smith or Honeycrisp), peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
2 cups fresh white breadcrumbs
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest
1/4 tsp salt
For the Almond Cream:
1 cup heavy whipping cream, chilled
2 tbsp powdered sugar
1/2 tsp pure almond extract

Instructions

Preheat and prepare. Heat oven to 375°F. Butter a 2-quart baking dish and set aside.
Season the apples. In a large bowl, toss the sliced apples with lemon juice, lemon zest, 1/2 cup of the sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt until evenly coated.
Mix the crumbs. In a separate bowl, stir together the breadcrumbs, melted butter, and remaining 1/4 cup sugar until the crumbs are evenly moistened.
Layer the Betty. Spread one third of the breadcrumb mixture evenly across the bottom of the prepared dish. Arrange half the apple mixture over the crumbs. Add another third of the breadcrumb mixture, then the remaining apples, then finish with the final layer of crumbs spread evenly on top.
Bake covered. Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 25 minutes, until the apples have begun to soften and release their juices.
Bake uncovered. Remove the foil and continue baking for 18–20 minutes more, until the top is golden brown and the apples are completely tender when pierced with a knife.
Make the almond cream. While the Betty bakes, beat the chilled heavy cream with a hand mixer on medium-high speed until soft peaks form. Add the powdered sugar and almond extract and continue beating until the cream holds medium peaks. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Serve warm. Spoon the Apple Betty into bowls while still warm and top each serving with a generous dollop of almond cream.

Nutrition (per serving)

Apple Betty with Almond Cream — The Sweetness That Takes You Somewhere Else