We’ve had such a crazy week, but tonight it’s chilly and rainy, and it’s time to bust out the Apple Dumpling recipe! Nothing cheers up a gloomy day like fresh from the oven apple dumplings with vanilla ice cream–It’s seriously one of the best recipes I make (and it’s also entirely possible that I may eat one of these for lunch tomorrow too…just maybe…) 😉 This recipe was adapted from two other really good recipes, taking the best of each to make a fantastic dessert with a flaky crust around baked apple deliciousness, and an amazing caramelized sauce. It might look complicated, but it’s not too bad, and the results are so worth it! I hope your family enjoys it as much as mine does!
Apple Dumplings
- 2 cups flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 2/3 cup shortening
- 1/2 cup milk
- 6 apples
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
- 1/3 cup butter
- extra butter (about 1/4 c.), sugar, and cinnamon for the centers of the apples
Mix flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add shortening.
Cut in shortening using a pastry blender or two knives.
Add milk and stir until a dough forms (will resemble biscuit dough). Refrigerate while you prepare the apples and sauce.
Peel and core all six apples. I used a special coring tool like this one for the first time, and it was amazing.
If you don’t have a corer, just use the knife to cut around the core and remove it, leaving a hollow center in each apple.
Put brown sugar, water, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a saucepan and heat till boiling. Remove from heat and add 1/3 cup butter. Set aside.
Roll out dough to a rectangle about 1/8 inch thick. Cut into 6 squares (and if you’re bad at eyeballing it like I was, you can fudge it a little and move the extra dough to where you need it!).
Place a pat of butter in the center of each square, and top with a cored apple. Put a “spoonful of sugar” (a heaping tsp.) and a shake of cinnamon in the core of each apple.
Wrap the dough up and around the apple, completely surrounding it. Try to seal any cracks–you may have to pinch off some excess dough from one part to use it on another if necessary.
Place the dough-covered apples in a buttered 9 x 13 pan with the sealed edges on the bottom (the pat of butter will now be on the top side, under the dough). Pour the brown sugar sauce over the apples. Place in a preheated 425° oven for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to 350 and spoon some of the sauce over top of the dumplings. Cook for another 25-30 minutes until golden brown.
Allow to cool slightly, and serve warm in a bowl with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream, topped with the sauce from the bottom of the pan.
Enjoy!