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Have extra zucchini? Try making this Zucchini Crisp, it’s a mock apple crisp and you won’t believe it’s not apples! A wonderful zucchini dessert for summer or any time!
A few years ago, I learned to make this Zucchini Crisp, or Mock Apple Crisp and it’s AMAZING! Our family loves zucchini! When summer rolls around there’s always a TON of zucchini coming out of our garden, being given away, or sold for very cheap because it’s so plentiful.
Usually, we just oven-roast our zucchini, but having this additional recipe to use up those large zucchini has been a game changer!
Homemade Zucchini Crisp (Mock Apple Crisp)
When a friend originally told me about this recipe, and that it tasted JUST like apple crisp, I did not believe her. Not one tiny bit. She SWORE that it fooled everyone at her church dinner when one of the members made it, so I had to try it.
I have very high standards for apple crisp, too. Growing up, my Mama’s Apple Crisp recipe was a stable dessert and it was SO GOOD.
You guys, if I had not been the one to peel the zucchini myself I would NEVER have known that it was zucchini and not apples in that Zucchini Crisp.
In addition to the fact that I’m sure someone switched my zucchini for apples when I wasn’t looking while I was baking this, the topping on this is KILLER. It’s like an oatmeal cookie on top of baked apples and it’s SO good with vanilla ice cream!
So if you have a ton of large zucchini and are looking for zucchini recipes, then you need to try this Zucchini Crisp!
Directions
While it might be a little intimidating, making this zucchini crisp is very simple! Here are the step-by-step directions with pictures to help you through your first time. After that, you’ll be a pro!
Step 1. Peel and seed the zucchini.
The first thing you will need to do is peel your zucchini. Then slice them in half length-wise and use a spoon to scrape out the seeds. All the seeds.
You will ruin the texture if you skip this step. You will fool no one with your slimy zucchini covered in cinnamon if you skip this step. Don’t skip it.
NOTE: This also works best if you use oversized zucchini that has hardened some. Tender zucchini will have more liquid in them still. If you can’t find oversized zucchini, you may need to drain some of the liquid after the zucchini has boiled.
Step 2. Slice and cook your zucchini.
Then slice them into thin slices (like 1/4″ thick) just like you would apples for apple crisp since this is a Mock Apple Crisp.
Put the zucchini into a big pot with the cinnamon, sugar, lemon juice, and water and mix until all the zucchini is covered.
Place the pot on high heat until boiling. Boil for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. You will think there’s not enough liquid in the pot for it to boil, but there will be. Just trust me.
Step 3. Make the topping for the Zucchini Crisp.
Then you’re going to preheat your oven to 375°F. While the oven is preheating and the zucchini is boiling, make your topping.
Grease a 9×13 pan and set it to the side. Once the zucchini mixture is finished boiling, dump it in the greased 9×13 pan. Top it with the topping mixture.
I just used my fingers and sprinkled it on top keeping it pretty even over the zucchini.
Step 4. Bake your dessert.
Bake it at 375°F for 55-60 minutes. The edges will just start to look golden brown when it’s finished.
Serve it hot with ice cream! Trick your friends (or your husband, like I did) and family, and watch their shocked faces when they realize the apple crisp they’re eating is actually zucchini!
Even More Desserts to Try Next!
Zucchini Crisp | Mock Apple Crisp
Ingredients
- 8 cups zucchini, peeled and sliced (see notes for best results)
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 3/4 cup water
FOR THE TOPPING:
- 1 cup butter softened
- 1 cup oatmeal
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 1/2 cups flour
Instructions
- Peel the zucchini. Then cut them in half long-ways and use a spoon to scrape out the seeds. Make sure to get all of them.
- Slice the zucchini into 1/4″ thick slices.
- In a large pot, combine the sliced zucchini, cinnamon, sugar, lemon juice, and water and bring to a boil.
- Boil for 15 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375°F
- While the zucchini boils, make the topping.
- Mix the oatmeal, cinnamon, brown sugar, flour and butter together in a bowl using a fork.
- When the zucchini is done boiling, pur it into a greased 9×13 baking pan.
- Top the zucchini with the topping mixture. Use your fingers to sprinkle the topping evenly over the surface.
- Bake uncovered for 55-60 minutes at 375°F. The edges will just look golden brown when it's ready to come out.
- Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.
Notes
- Use a LARGE zucchini, not a normal-size zucchini. These are the zucchini that were left in the field too long and the flesh hardened more. If regular (tender) zucchini are used, you may need to drain some of the liquid after boiling.
- It’s super important to get the seeds out before cooking, so don’t skip this step.
- The topping will look thick, but it bakes into a crispy perfect topping once it’s cooked.
Nutrition
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I froze the zucchini mixture and thawed it today and made three batches today. The frozen worked great!!! Amazing tasting and will definitely make lots more!!!
I do this same thing in the fall with my zucchini, but boil the zucchini in apple juice, then freeze it. Tastes just like apples and the texture is great!
Do you have to bake it right away
This was good! The only thing I might recommend is a bit more lemon juice. Apple crisp tends to be a bit more tart than this zucchini crisp turned out to be.
Great idea! Glad you enjoyed it!
Have you made the filling and frozen it to be used later in a Zucchini Crisp? I think it would work.
Zucchini gets very mushy after being frozen, unlike apples. So I wouldn’t try it, but if you do, let me know how it goes!
I did make the filling and froze it. Thawed and used for Apple Crisp tonight and they cleaned the 9×13 dish. I used 10 cups of diced zucchini. As I left with the empty dish, I announced that it was zucchini and they were blown away. Even the teens loved it.
Love this! Teens are not easy to please, so I’m glad this worked out! <3
I was pleasantly surprised. Recipe is straightforward and easy, The only problem I encountered is that the instructions say to bake until edges are golden brown. It might just be me, or the use of brown sugar, but I never saw the edges change. I pulled the pan at 55 minutes. This allowed the corners of the dish to overcook slightly,. However, to me, the dish was still completely enjoyable. I tried it without ice cream first and it was great. Adding ice cream made it awesome. It is a bit on the sweet side and definitely a bit crunchy, but still an excellent use of leftover zucchini. I used one medium-large zucchini and had exactly 8 cups. The instructions tell you to use a large part to boil the zucchini. I’d recommend using a medium to large saucepan instead. You need room to spread the zucchini around and the amount of water and lemon juice is minimal so it just works better in a saucepan.. I strongly recommend.
Really good! Everyone who ate this thought I used apples! I didn’t have oatmeal on hand for the crumble but it wasn’t missed. Will definitely make again.
So good!
There was a lot of liquid left after cooking the zucchini. You don’t say whether or not it should go into the baking pan. I guessed that the zucchini would continue making liquid while baking, so I drained it off (a full cup) and put it aside. Then added 2 heaping teaspoons of corn starch to the liquid and microwaved it till it boiled. Used that syrup as a topping for the ice cream. Next time I’d just pour the syrup over the zucchini slices before putting the topping on.
Thanks for posting this recipe! It’s outstanding, although too sweet for my taste. Next time I’ll use 10-12 cups of zucchini instead of 8. This time, I used 2 cups of oats for the crumble mix instead of 1 – and am glad I did. Next time I’ll also reduce the brown sugar to 2/3 cup. Otherwise, no other changes to recipe quantities.
I might add some chopped walnuts or pecans to the crumble mix… and/or a few golden raisins to the zucchini slices before baking.
This is amazing! Cooked it today ready for dessert but the family found it and ate it cold for afternoon tea! I swapped the white sugar for rice bran syrup and skipped the water then halved the brown sugar in topping and added more rice bran – yum! Have another one on to freeze as a slice for school lunches. Kids don’t believe it have veg in it🤣. Thank you.
Do you have to precook the zucchini?
I don’t usually precook the apples ?!?
Just follow the recipe as written – all the steps are in there and it comes out great! This isn’t really an alternative to apple crisp, is more a clever and delicious way to use up zucchini!
interesting idea
Recipe says 1 cup oatmeal…is that just the oats? Does it matter what kind of oats?
Yes, just regular quick oats! =)
Used Old Fashioned Oats in mine as opposed to Quick Oats. Worked well. Agree about excessive sweetness, not that it was bad, everyone thought it was fine, I just think it would still be good with less sugar.
This is a great use of squash after using all of the vegetable recipes to eat it up. We were ready for a change! I used tromboncino squash to great success.
Whoo hoo! I’m so glad to hear y’all enjoyed it!! <3
Does it have to be served warm? What does it taste like if served cold/room temperature?
It tastes fine! I just love it warm with ice cream!
Thank you for this DELICIOUS way to use those giant zucchini!
You’re so welcome! We always have so many haha
Made this recipe tonight-Delicious! Substituted Stevia for the white sugar.
Great idea! Isn’t it awesome?! Who knew zucchini could be so versatile!
What is the amount of cinnamon used in the topping? It talks about adding the cinnamon with the oatmeal, flour, etc but no amount given.
I just checked the recipe card in the post, and the amount is there =) It’s one tablespoon of cinnamon. Hope you love it!
1 tablespoon
Could this be frozen? I have a lot of zucchini and would love to put a few zucchini crisps in the freezer for the next few months. Thanks!
Ya know, I’m not sure. You should try one and let me know!!
Did you try it frozen? How did it come out?
I made the cooked filing with 10 cups of cooked zucchini and froze it. Took it out today and thawed it and made a crisp that was a hit tonight with adults and teens. As I left I told them it was zucchini and they were blown away. I have 2 more batches of 10 to 12 cups frozen. Yes, a bumper crop this year.
This is amazing!! I’m so glad to hear that it was a hit, whoo hoo!! And also great to hear how well it froze/thawed <3