Apple Pizza -- The Sweetness of a California Fall That Knows It’s Fall

Fall. The season of apples and cinnamon. Not East Coast fall — California doesn't do the red-and-orange leaf thing. California does golden grass and ocean sunsets and a temperature drop from 80 to 72 that locals consider 'cold.' I miss real fall. Norfolk fall. Crunching leaves and cider and sweater weather that requires a sweater. But the kitchen knows it's fall. The soups return. The crockpot emerges. The oven gets more use. The body knows the season even when the weather doesn't cooperate. Baked apple crisp this weekend — Mom's recipe, oats and brown sugar and cinnamon and enough butter to make a cardiologist flinch. Caleb helped measure the oats. Hazel 'helped' by eating raw oats off the counter. Called Mom. She's in full fall mode in Norfolk. Dad's garden is winding down — tomatoes done, zucchini finished, the habaneros produced enough to stock a Mexican restaurant. 'Your father has given habaneros to every neighbor,' Mom said. 'They smile and take them and I guarantee they throw them away.' Dad's habaneros: the gift nobody asked for. The Abernathy love language. The book revisions are done. Publication date confirmed: February 2024. Five months. Made butternut squash soup tonight. The fall soup. The soup that says 'the season is changing even if the weather isn't.' The soup that believes in fall even in San Diego. Fall. Wherever you are. The soup knows.

That weekend of baking with Caleb and Hazel — oats measured with small hands, raw oats stolen off the counter — reminded me that fall in this house lives in the kitchen, even when it’s 72 degrees outside. Apple pizza has become our other fall ritual, the one we pull out when we want all the warmth of an apple crisp but with something a little different to bring to the table. It’s the kind of recipe Mom would have made on a Norfolk afternoon, and making it here in San Diego is my way of telling the season I believe in it — even when the leaves don’t fall.

Apple Pizza

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 25 min | Total Time: 45 min | Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 1 tube (13.8 oz) refrigerated pizza crust dough
• 3 medium apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced (Granny Smith or Honeycrisp work well)
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup rolled oats
• 3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup caramel sauce, for drizzling
• Powdered sugar, for dusting (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven. Preheat your oven to 400°F. Lightly grease a large baking sheet or pizza pan.
2. Prepare the crust. Unroll the pizza dough onto the prepared pan and stretch it into a rough circle or rectangle, about 12 inches across. Brush the surface with 2 tablespoons of the melted butter.
3. Season the apples. In a medium bowl, toss the sliced apples with the remaining melted butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg until evenly coated.
4. Make the streusel topping. In a small bowl, combine the flour, oats, and granulated sugar. Work in the cold butter pieces with your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse crumbles.
5. Assemble the pizza. Arrange the seasoned apple slices evenly over the prepared crust, leaving a 1-inch border around the edges. Scatter the streusel topping evenly over the apples.
6. Bake. Bake for 22—26 minutes, until the crust is golden and the apples are tender and caramelized at the edges.
7. Finish and serve. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes. Drizzle generously with caramel sauce and dust with powdered sugar if desired. Slice into wedges or squares and serve warm.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 310 | Protein: 4g | Fat: 11g | Carbs: 50g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 310mg