Apple Brown Betty

Here is my take on the classic and comforting American dessert – Apple brown betty. A not-so-buttery dessert made with apples, bread, sugar, and spices – a perfect fall treat!

I love fruit-based desserts, and I have mentioned it many times on my blog, and I have shared quite a few fruit-based desserts. And now I am adding one more to that list – Apple Brown Betty. Interesting name, right? 

The name and the recipe are quite exciting, and the highlight is – it’s an effortless recipe, and you can whip it up quickly. 

Even though this recipe involves baking, there is no mixing, no accurate measuring, etc. All you need to do is chop the bread and apples, prepare the syrup, layer them all, and bake. 

Are you wondering how I got to know about this recipe? Back in 2016, there were many recipe challenges and contests in the blogging world. I got to know about this dessert in one of the cake challenges. It was a rare dessert/cake challenge, and brown betty was one among them. As it was fruit-based, I picked it up, did my usual research, understood the recipe, and shared my version with my own spin. 

Brown Betty

Apple Brown Betty is one of the traditional American desserts. I read that this recipe’s origin was around colonial times and chances are that it could be named after a person. The name “Apple Brown Betty” seems to have first appeared in print in 1864, when an article in the Yale Literary Magazine listed it. (Referred from here) Here is another quora link behind the name reason.

Brown Betty with Bread

There are several versions of this apple brown betty, and you can some with oats, flour, etc. I took the base recipe from Ree Drummond from Food Network. Still, I modified and added other ingredients to give a “fall” taste and considerably reduced the butter. 

Traditionally granny smith apple varieties are used in this brown betty, but I used our all-time favorite honey crisp. I have tried this recipe with fuji and gala apples as well. 

Coming back to the recipe, all you need is some bread, sugar, syrup, and of course, apples. The other ingredient depends based on your taste preference. I included multi-grain bread and also used maple syrup to retain the moisture. To enhance the flavor, I included orange zest and also the allspice for the fall flavor. But you can replace it with cinnamon powder or nutmeg powder. (Please refer to notes section below)

You layer the bread, apple, and sugar, and then add the syrup and bake the brown betty. That’s it. 

Equipment needed

You can bake this brown betty in a baking pan or in a casserole dish. I usually bake this in my Corningware 2.5 oval baking dish. It’s easy for me to carry to the parties and potlucks. 

Serving suggestion

You can serve the brown betty warm as is or serve it up with ice cream or whipped cream. I usually make this dessert for parties and potlucks, and it will be gone in no-time, and there won’t be any leftovers. I have never stored it for more than a day in the fridge. :-) But you can very store it in an air-tight container and refrigerate it. Warm it before serving. 

Now let me share the detailed recipe with step-wise pictures. 

How to make apple brown betty

Prepare the syrup

• In a mixing bowl, add the dark maple syrup, water, allspice, and orange zest. Mix well and blend the allspice thoroughly. Peel, core, and slice the apples and remove the bread’s edges and chop them into cubes and set aside.

Layer the bread and apples

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Use the room-temperature butter and generously butter the baking dish. 
• Place half of the bread slices in the baking dish and spread them evenly. Then place half the apple slices. Then sprinkle 2 tbsps of brown sugar.

• Now place the remaining half the bread slices, followed by the apples. Sprinkle the remaining sugar on top.  Gently and evenly pour the prepared maple syrup mix on the top. 

• Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil, and using a fork, poke a few holes like below.

Bake the brown betty

• Bake this for 45 minutes at 350 deg F. After 45 minutes, remove the cover and bake for another 15 minutes.

• That’s it. Apple Brown Betty is ready.

• Let it cool and serve it as is or with ice cream or whipped cream. 

Recipe Notes

• You can use the apple variety that you have in hand. 
• Instead of dark maple syrup, you can use light maple syrup or old-fashioned syrup also. Alternatively, you can skip the syrup and use more sugar instead. In that case, add ¼ more cup of water.
• I highly recommend brown sugar for this recipe.
• Allspice powder can be replaced with ground nutmeg and ground cinnamon or just with ground cinnamon alone.
• Lemon / Lime / Orange zest can also be used, and also you can use about 2 tbsps of juice for added flavor.
• I did not use any additional butter other than for greasing the baking dish. But along with sugar, you can drizzle 1 tbsp of melted butter while forming the layers. 
• You can use white/wheat/multi-grain bread of your choice.

For the love of apples… More apple recipes

PS:  If you try this apple brown betty, please don’t forget to comment and rate this recipe. If you have any questions, please leave a comment, and I will get to it A.S.A.P.  Make sure to follow me on my Pinterest for more healthy and delicious ideas! Follow me on Instagram or join my Facebook Group for more gardening and recipe updates! You can also sign-up for my newsletter for weekly updates.

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5 from 3 votes

Apple Brown Betty

My take on the classic & comforting American dessert – Apple brown betty. A not-so-buttery dessert made with apples, bread, sugar, & spices.

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Total Time1 hr 15 mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: 8

Calories: 134kcal

Author: Srividhya G

Equipment

• conventional oven
• Baking dish or casserole

Ingredients

Measurement Details: 1 cup=240ml; 1 tbsp=15ml; 1tsp=5ml;

• ▢ 2 apples I used honey-crisp variety. Approx 462 grams. Peeled, cored, and sliced.
• ▢ 5 bread slices I used Dave’s Killer bread. Edges removed and cut into cubes.
• ▢ ¼ cup brown sugar
• ▢ 1 tbsp butter at room temperature

For the Syrup

• ▢ ¼ cup dark maple syrup
• ▢ 3 tbsp water
• ▢ 1 tsp allspice
• ▢ 1 tsp orange zest

Instructions

Prepare the syrup

• In a mixing bowl, add the dark maple syrup, water, allspice, and orange zest. Mix well and blend the allspice thoroughly. Peel, core, and slice the apples and remove the bread’s edges and chop them into cubes and set aside.
  

Layer the bread and apples

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Use the room-temperature butter and generously butter the baking dish.
• Place half of the bread slices in the baking dish and spread them evenly. Then place half the apple slices. Then sprinkle 2 tbsps of brown sugar.
  
• Now place the remaining half the bread slices, followed by the apples. Sprinkle the remaining sugar on top. Gently and evenly pour the prepared maple syrup mix on the top.
  
• Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil, and using a fork, poke a few holes like below.
  

Bake the brown betty

• Bake this for 45 minutes at 350 deg F. After 45 minutes, remove the cover and bake for another 15 minutes.
  
• That’s it. Apple Brown Betty is ready. Let it cool and serve it as is or with ice cream or whipped cream.
  

Notes

• You can use the apple variety that you have in hand. 
• Instead of dark maple syrup, you can use light maple syrup or old-fashioned syrup also. Alternatively, you can skip the syrup and use more sugar instead. In that case, add ¼ more cup of water.
• I highly recommend brown sugar for this recipe.
• Allspice powder can be replaced with ground nutmeg and ground cinnamon or just with ground cinnamon alone.
• Lemon / Lime / Orange zest can also be used, and also you can use about 2 tbsps of juice for added flavor.
• I did not use any additional butter other than for greasing the baking dish. But along with sugar, you can drizzle 1 tbsp of melted butter while forming the layers. 
• You can use white/wheat/multi-grain bread of your choice.

Nutrition

Calories: 134kcal | Carbohydrates: 27g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 4mg | Sodium: 86mg | Potassium: 124mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 69IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 40mg | Iron: 1mg

I am not a nutritionist. The nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. It varies depending upon the product types or brands.

Tried this recipe?Mention @vidhyasvegetariankitchen or tag #vidhyasvegkitchen

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Update Notes: Earlier posted in 2016, now updated with new pics, recipe card with nutritional information.