Featured Recipe Agave Apple Crisp

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly oil an 8- or 9-inch square baking dish. Toss apples with lemon juice, apple juice or water, sweetener, and cinnamon. Spread in bottom of pan. Mix oats, wheat germ, nuts, spices, and salt in food processor with metal blade or by hand. Heat butter or oil and mix with sweetener until smooth. Add to oat mixture and stir until completely combined. Cover apples with topping. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden. Serve with your choice of topping (page xxx). Makes 9 servings

Steps:

• Make the topping: Rub together the flour, both sugars, the spice and salt in a medium bowl. Toss in the butter and nuts to coat, then pinch the butter into the dry ingredients until no floury bits remain. Add the oats, and gently rake and squeeze them through the buttery mixture to form peanut-size crumbles. Freeze while you prepare the apples. The crumb mixture can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 1 month.
• Prepare the apples: Heat oven to 375 degrees. Use 1 tablespoon sugar for all sweet apples; 2 to 3 tablespoons for sweet-tart apples or a mix; and 4 tablespoons for all tart apples. Mix the sugar with the flour, spice and salt in a 10-inch cast-iron or other heavy ovenproof skillet.
• If you'd like, peel the apples. Cut into 1/2-inch chunks, discarding the seeds and cores. Add to the skillet and drizzle with 1 tablespoon lemon juice for tart apples and 2 tablespoons for sweet-tart and sweet ones. Mix until evenly coated, then spread in an even layer. Crumble the frozen crisp mixture on top. (There will be gaps.)
• Bake until the topping is golden brown, and the apples are tender and bubbling, 45 to 50 minutes. Cool for at least 15 minutes on a rack before serving hot, warm or at room temperature.

Steps:

• Peel, core, and slice 8 large apples or 10 medium ones. Arrange sliced apples in a 9 x 13 inch baking pan. Drizzle apples with ½ cup agave nectar. In a bowl, combine2 ½ T. ground cinnamon, ½ tsp. ground nutmeg, ½ cup whole-wheat pastry flour, 2 cups quick or old-fashioned oatmeal, and dash of salt if using unsalted butter in the recipe. Melt a stick of butter (½ cup) and combine with the dry ingredients to form pebble-sized crumbles. Toss in ½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans and mix. Sprinkle the crumbly mixture over sliced apples and bake in 350 degree oven for 45-55 minutes, or until apples are tender when pricked with a fork. Top with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, and serve warm or cold.