THE ORIGINAL ‘RECEIPT’

APPLE BETTY. – This pudding is a prime favorite with the younger members of the family.  To each cupful of finely chopped sour apples add a cupful of fine breadcrumbs, two teaspoonfuls of sugar, little cinnamon, grated lemon rind or nutmeg, and a tablespoonful of butter.  Spread the apples upon the bottom of a buttered pudding-dish, then a little sugar and flavoring and a few bits of butter, then breadcrumbs, then apples again and so on until all is used, crumbs being placed on top.  If the apples are not juicy, add three tablespoonfuls of water.  Cover the dish and bake three-fourths of an hour: then undercover and bake fifteen minutes longer and send to table in the same dish.  This is also called Scalloped Apples.

~Karn, W. A. (Druggist). The Art of Cooking Made Easy. Woodstock: 1903.

THE UPDATED RECIPE

• 2 c. grated bread crumbs
• 2 c. chopped apple (approx. 3 apples)(cut into thin slices)
• grated rind of half a lemon
• 4 Tb. brown sugar
• ½ tsp. powdered cinnamon
• 2 Tb. butter
• 3 Tb. water.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Grease a 6-cup capacity covered baking dish with butter. 

Grate and measure the bread crumbs.

Peel and thinly slice the apples (preferably a tart variety, such as Northern Spy, Granny Smith, Pink Lady).

Grate the lemon rind, and combine it with the brown sugar and cinnamon.

Spread about one third of the chopped apples in the bottom of the baking dish.

Sprinkle with part of the sugar, cinnamon and lemon rind mixture, and dot with some of the butter.

Top this with one third of the bread crumbs.

Repeat this sequence of layers twice more, ending with a layer of crumbs on the top.

Sprinkle with the three tablespoons of water.

Cover with a lid, and bake in a preheated oven at 350F for three-quarters of an hour.

Then remove the lid from the baking dish, and bake for an additional fifteen minutes.

Yield: 3 – 4 servings.

Serve Apple Betty warm, with whipped cream, ice cream, or a warm vanilla sauce.

A note from Patricia: I made this simple recipe with my friend Jill, and when I say simple, I mean it couldn’t have been easier. We used gluten-free bread pulsed in the food processor to make the crumbs, and we used Pink Lady apples which held up well when baking. While it baked, Jill whipped up a batch of this warm vanilla sauce (from “The Spruce Eats”), and I whipped up some whipping cream sweetened with a bit of maple syrup. We were feeling a bit wild and crazy, so we ate our Apple Betty with the warm sauce AND the whipped cream, and it was absolutely delicious. It’s a great recipe to use up stale bread, and I’ve even seen versions of this recipe that use small cubes of muffins, croissants, cake, and pastries that are past their prime. YUM!

Apple Betty. – ….This is a cheap but good pudding, better than many a richer one.

~Warren, Jane.  The Ladies’ Own Home Cook Book. New York: Hurst & Company, 1891.

Eat warm with sugar and cream, or sweet sauce.  This is a homely but very good pudding, especially for the children’s table.  Serve in the dish in which it is baked.

~Harland, Marion.  Common Sense in the Household: A Manual of Practical Housewifery.  Toronto: G. M. Rose & Sons, 1884.