Make my easy slow cooker apple cherry crisp with fresh cherries and apples and just a few other pantry ingredients. This set-it-and-forget-it crockpot dessert is effortless and tastes amazing. Let's get into it!
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Why You'll Love this Recipe
Enjoy it All Year Long - Consider this simple slow cooker dessert with fresh fruit a bridge between seasons--cherries for summer and apples for fall. You can use fresh or frozen fruit to enjoy anytime from the height of summer cherry season to the freeze of winter.
Easy Enough for Beginners - My crockpot cherry crisp without cake mix is easy to make and even easier to eat. Mix up the filling and the topping then add to a slow cooker to get all warm and gooey. This is a great recipe to make with kids!
What does it taste like?
Slow Cooker Cherry apple Crisp is sweet, warm, and bursting with fruity flavors. I love mixing up different fruits in desserts like my perfectly autumnal Apple, Pear & Cranberry Pie or my Strawberry Blackberry Slab Pie. And if you enjoy this recipe, you'll love my super moist Applesauce Bread with Crumble Topping!
What You'll Need for this Recipe
Apples and Cherries can be fresh or frozen. I like Honeycrisp apples and dark sweet cherries in this recipe but you can use your favorite varieties. And peeling the apples is optional!
Oats for the crock pot fruit crisp topping. Be sure to use rolled or old fashioned oats. Quick oats will not yield the right texture.
Flour goes in both the filling and the oat crisp topping for indulgently thick texture. If you want to make this dessert gluten-free, you can use cornstarch instead.
Check out the recipe card below for full ingredients list, measurements, nutrition facts, and step-by-step instructions!
Substitutions & Variations
Fresh or Frozen - Use either fresh or frozen fruit in this recipe depending on the season. I don't recommend using canned apple or cherry pie filling, though, as the taste and texture won't be the same. This cherry apple crisp from scratch is already easy enough!
Fruits - Feel free to add other fruits to your crockpot apple crisp with fresh cherries to complement or replace the cherry and apple. Blueberries and pears are a great combination.
Nuts - Add nuts like walnuts or pecans to the oat crisp ingredients for delightful pops of crunch.
How to Make Apple Cherry Crisp in a Crock Pot
Step One: Pit and halve the cherries and peel (optional) and chop the apples.
Step Two: Add all filling ingredients to the crock and mix until fruit is evenly coated.
Pro Tip: Mixing up the fruit filling in the crockpot makes for easier cleanup!
Step Three: Mix up the oats and other topping ingredients until uniform.
Step Four: Spread the oat topping over the fruit filling.
Step Five: Cover the crisp and set on high heat for about four hours or low heat for 6-8 hours.
Step Six: Cook until filling is thickened and bubbly and topping is crisp and golden brown.
Pro Tip: Layer two sheets of paper towel between the crisp and the slow cooker lid. This little trick catches the steam that condenses on the inside of the lid during cooking from dripping back down into the crock and making the topping soggy, which is not cute!
Try my soulful Peach Cobbler from scratch next--it's been a family fave for generations!
How-to Video
Frequently Asked Questions
Crisp is made with a more crunchy topping typically including oats and nuts, while a cobbler uses a batter or dough topping such as biscuits or pie crust.
Yes, you can make this dessert up to two days in advance. You can even leave it in the slow cooker on the keep warm setting for up to six hours, if yours has one.
Store any leftover dessert in an airtight container in the fridge. It will keep for up to five days. Do not place the slow cooker in the refrigerator.
How to Serve Fruit Crisp from a Slow Cooker
In case you're entertaining or serving a crowd, one of the extra magical aspects of this hands-free dessert recipe is that you can prep, cook, and serve it all out of the same vessel! Set the slow cooker to "keep warm" add a spoon, and you're ready to party.
Serve this dessert with a scoop or two of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream, if you like.
More Cherry and Apple Dessert Recipes
I hope you'll enjoy a bowl of this cozy crockpot apple crisp with cherries soon and very soon. And sharing is caring so be sure to pin this recipe for later and follow me over on Pinterest.
📖 Recipe
Slow Cooker Apple Cherry Crisp
Equipment
- 1 knife
- 1 Cherry pitter optional
Ingredients
For the Apple Cherry Filling
- 1 pound fresh or frozen cherries
- 3 apples
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ cup flour
- ¼ cup lemon juice
Topping
- 1 cup rolled oats
- ½ cup brown sugar packed
- ¼ cup flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ cup butter melted
Instructions
- Pit and halve cherries. Peel and chop apples into one-inch pieces.
- Add cherries, apples, sugar, flour, and lemon juice to crock of slow cooker and mix until fruit is evenly coated.
- Add oats, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, sea salt, and melted butter to a bowl and stir until uniform.
- Spoon oat mixture over top of fruit filling in crock pot.
- Place two layers of paper towel on top of oat topping then cover with slow cooker lid.
- Set to high and cook for about fours or until filling is thickened and bubbly and topping is golden brown and crisp.
JeanHamilton says
Can this recipe be doubled? How does that effect the cook time?.
Jazzmine Woodard says
Hi, Jean! I have not doubled this recipe before, but based on the contents, I'd estimate that the cook time wouldn't change too much--maybe an extra hour. That said, if you decide to double it, I would add a layer of filling to the crock, followed by a layer of topping, then repeat, rather than simply making thicker layers of each. This way none of the elements are too thick. You could also use two slow cookers. Hope this is helpful.
Tisha says
Omg I literally just got an e-mail that cherries are on sale at Whole Foods! Definitely a sign that I must try this recipe
Momma To Go says
I've never made a dessert in the slow cooker! What a great idea. I also have not eaten enough cherries this season!
Jazz says
I hadn't either before this one but it turned out so well that I'll definitely use it more often. Thanks for reading!
Danielle @ A Sprinkle of Joy says
That looks so tasty!!! I'm usually a chocolate fan, but I may make an exception for this!
Butter, Basil and Breadcrumbs says
I am so excited to try this! Sadly our cherry season is over, but I'm going to try this one with frozen! I am a cherry fanatic! ❤️ Recipe is printing as I'm typing!
Jazz says
Thanks so much! This will work just fine with frozen.
bitesofflavor says
This looks delicious!! I would have never thought about doing a fruit crisp in the slow cooker... now I must try it!
Jazz says
It's unbelievably easy. You can set it to low and go about your whole day then come home to warm, bubbly dessert!
Alexandra T Armstrong says
This looks delicious as well as easy. Can't wait to try it. Pinned it too!
knenopoulos says
That looks incredible. I have to try!!!! My daughter loves cherries and I love my slow cooker. Win win!
Kate
http://Www.mwdgaf.com
TheFrugalCouponer says
and all that was done in a slow cooker? WOW - i'm very impressed!
Tammy says
This would be a great dessert for a dinner party. Such a time saver! Thank you.