Last night I decided I’d like to have something a little sweet, but didn’t really know what I wanted.

We just bought some lovely organic apples, and my husband loves my Apple Crisp, but I didn’t want to take that much time.  So I came up with this:

• 2 Honey Crisp Apples cut into thin slices
• A little bit of Earth Balance Buttery spread, a couple of teaspoons probably.  (you might be able to leave this out.
• 1/4 cup apple juice , or a little more depending on your apples.  You will be reducing the apple juice and this will add a good amount of sweetness.
• ground cinnamon and nutmeg to taste.
• a little bit of agave or other sweetener if they aren’t sweet enough.  (this is to taste.  I added light agave, it comes in a squeeze bottle so I just squeezed a little over the apples.)
• gluten-free oats (I blended these in the food processor so they’d be more like quick oats)   (I’m not sure how much I added, I just sprinkled some in to see how it would work, then added a little more.  Probably no more than 2-3 tablespoons)

Put the apple juice and apples in a small skillet and cook over med-low heat until the apple juice is reduced  and the apples are as tender as you like.  (we like ours a little crunchy)  Add the Agave, or sweetener now.  The Agave made it a little thicker and a tad sweeter.  Add the Earth Balance and oats, they won’t get crispy like they do when you make apple crisp, but they add a good texture.   Sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg to taste.  I didn’t add enough at first, but it can be easily added when you are eating them.  That way if one person likes more cinnamon or nutmeg they can add more.

I enjoyed this a lot.  I kept thinking it needed ice cream (well Rice Dream would have been better for my tummy).  My husband said it was good, but missing something.  I asked him if he really wanted ice cream with it, and he agreed he thought that was the missing ingredient.  He still prefers the Apple Crisp because he likes it when the oat topping gets crunchy, and I think he also likes it more because it has sugar and brown sugar in it.

All in all, this was a very good, light desert.  You can play with it to get the taste the way you want it.  I’m trying to reduce my sugar intake, but you could add sugar if you wanted.