Apple crisp

So what is the difference between an British crumble and an American crisp ?? It sounds sort of the same, and has the same ingredients....and they are both delicious as I found out making my first American crisp!! (Oh and for the record, aren't crisps ~  chips over here?? Just to complicate the matter....)
   Here is the recipe I followed for Mothers Apple Crisp , the mother in question being Mothers Bistro here in foggy Portland Oregon. I haven't been to the bistro, maybe I should...if this crisp is any indication of their cuisine!!
 

The the apple filling
10 Granny Smith apples
2 tbsps lemon juice
2 teasp cinnamon
1/2 cup granulated sugar

For the crisp topping
1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 to 2 teasp cinnamon
2 sticks butter cut into 1/2 inch chunks


Heat the oven to 350 F.  Spray the bottom of a 13 x 9 inch backing dish with non stick spray.
   For the filling, peel the apples and cut each of the four quarters off as close to the core as you can, this way it's a  bit quicker, and slice the quarters into 1/4 inch slices.

This is quite a dull job , I made a competition out of it by seeing how many apples I could peel in one piece....trickier than you think  and I know what you are thinking...get out more Caroline....
Anyway, put the sliced apples into a mixing bowl and add the lemon juice, cinnamon and sugar , and toss to coat. This mixture can then be put into the prepared dish.

To make the topping ,place the flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar and cinnamon into a food processor and blitz at low speed until small clumps form, about 3 minutes .

Scatter over the apples, squeezing it with your hands as you go to create larger pieces which will cook up extra - crispy and provide more texture. Lightly press the topping down onto the fruit.

 I know that's kind of a weird picture, it makes me feel a bit sea sick the way its orientated...


Bake for about 45 minutes until the topping is brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 30 minutes before serving, preferably with lashings of whipped cream or ice cream.

 There she is in all her glory.

   Tasting it is the best way to get the difference between the English and American desserts... in this dish the apples are soft but still maintain their shape, and in the other version they tend to be soft and  have a pureed texture.  The topping is different again, with this version  crispy crunchy and almost with a cake like feel, whereas the English version is finer in consistancy and tends to not to be terribly crispy. I think I'm leaning towards the crisp as my fav... sorry Delia Smith !!