Description
Old-Fashioned Apple Dumplings are a nostalgic dessert featuring tender, baked apples wrapped in flaky pie crust and drizzled with a sweet cinnamon-spiced sauce. This classic treat brings together warm spices and buttery crust, perfect for cozying up on any occasion.
Ingredients
Pie Dough
- 1 (14.1 ounces) box frozen double-crust pie pastry, thawed
Apple Filling
- 3 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and cut in half horizontally
- 5 tablespoons butter, divided
- 1 1/2 cups brown sugar, divided
- 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Sauce
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Preheat and prepare: Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C) and butter a 9×13 inch baking dish to prevent sticking and add flavor.
- Unroll and cut pie dough: Take the thawed pie dough and unroll each crust. Cut each circle into quarters. You should have six quarter pieces and half a circle left over.
- Arrange apples on pie dough: Place each apple half, peeled and cored, at the center of each quartered piece of pie dough.
- Fill apples: Cut the butter into six 1/2 tablespoon pieces. Place one piece inside the cored center of each apple half. Divide and sprinkle 1/2 cup brown sugar evenly among the apples, pressing it into the buttered cores. Then, sprinkle 1 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg over the apples.
- Wrap apples with pastry dough: Wet your fingers with water, then fold the pastry dough corners over the apple halves, bringing each corner to the top and sealing by pressing gently with your fingers. Press the sides slightly to completely enclose the apples in the dough. Place each wrapped apple seam-side down in the prepared baking dish.
- Make sauce: In a small saucepan, combine the remaining 1 cup brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, 2 tablespoons butter, and 1 cup water. Heat over medium heat until the mixture comes to a slight boil, dissolving the sugar and blending the flavors.
- Pour sauce over dumplings: Carefully pour the warm sauce evenly over the wrapped apple dumplings in the baking dish.
- Bake: Place the baking dish in the preheated oven and bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until the pastry tops are golden brown and the apples are tender.
- Serve: Serve each apple dumpling warm in a bowl, spooning extra sauce over the top. Optionally, add a scoop of vanilla ice cream for an extra indulgent dessert.
Notes
- Use Granny Smith apples for a tart contrast to the sweet filling.
- Keep fingers wet while sealing dough to prevent sticking and help create a tight seal.
- Ensure the sauce boils gently to properly dissolve sugar and meld flavors.
- For a richer dessert, serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
- Leftover dumplings can be refrigerated and reheated gently in the oven or microwave.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
