Old-fashioned apple dumplings are whole apples, peeled, cored and filled with butter and spiced sugar, wrapped in pie dough and baked in a pool of brown sugar sauce until the pastry is golden and the fruit is spoon-tender. They are a warm fall dessert for Sunday dinner, served with the syrupy sauce spooned over the top.
How to make old-fashioned apple dumplings: Peel and core 6 medium baking apples. Set each on a square of pie dough, fill the center with butter and spiced sugar, and pinch the dough closed around it. Boil apple juice, brown sugar and butter into a sauce, pour it over the dumplings and bake at 375°F for 50 to 55 minutes.
Why You’ll Love It
- A whole apple in every serving. Each person gets one dumpling.
- Homemade or store-bought dough. The recipe works with either.
- It makes its own sauce. The brown sugar syrup bakes around the dumplings.
- Make-ahead friendly. The dumplings can be assembled a day ahead.
Ingredient Notes
Baking apples. Six medium apples, such as Honeycrisp or Granny Smith, peeled and cored.
Pie dough. Enough for one 9-inch double-crust pie, homemade or store-bought.
Unsalted butter. Three tablespoons, cut into 6 equal pieces, go inside the apples. Another 1/4 cup goes into the sauce.
Granulated sugar and apple pie spice. Six tablespoons of sugar stirred with 1 teaspoon of spice for the filling.
Apple juice. One cup, unfiltered. Apple cider is an alternative.
Light brown sugar. Three-quarters of a cup, lightly packed, for the sauce.
Ingredients
- 6 baking apples, medium (Honeycrisp or Granny Smith), peeled and cored
- Pie dough, enough for one 9-inch double-crust pie, homemade or store-bought
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 6 equal pieces, for the apples
- 6 tablespoons granulated sugar, for the filling
- 1 teaspoon apple pie spice, for the filling
- 1 cup apple juice, unfiltered (apple cider is an alternative), for the sauce
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed, for the sauce
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, for the sauce
How to Make Old-Fashioned Apple Dumplings
1. Prepare the oven and apples. Heat the oven to 375°F and grease a 13×9-inch baking dish. Peel and core the apples.
2. Portion the dough. If using homemade pie dough, roll it into a rectangle about 21×14 inches and cut it into 6 pieces about 7×7 inches each. If using store-bought pie dough, unroll it and divide it into 6 equal pieces.
3. Fill and wrap. Stir the granulated sugar and apple pie spice together. Set an apple in the center of each dough piece. Put one piece of the 3 tablespoons of butter and a scant tablespoon of spiced sugar in each apple’s center. Bring the dough corners over each apple and pinch the edges to seal. Place the dumplings in the prepared dish.
4. Make the sauce. Put the apple juice or cider, brown sugar and remaining 1/4 cup butter in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking frequently. When the sauce reaches a rolling boil and the sugar has dissolved, remove it from the heat and carefully pour it evenly over the dumplings. Sprinkle any remaining spiced sugar on top.
5. Bake and check the apples. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, until the pastry is golden and a paring knife inserts easily into an apple. Let cool slightly and serve warm with the sauce.
Which Apples Work, and How to Tell They Are Done
Choose medium baking apples. Size matters as much as variety here. A medium apple fits inside its square of dough and cooks through in the time the pastry takes to brown. Extra-large apples are hard to wrap. Honeycrisp and Granny Smith are both good choices.
A whole apple is hidden inside pastry, so you cannot see when it is cooked. Use two checks together.
| Check | What to look for |
|---|---|
| The pastry | Golden all over |
| The apple | A paring knife slips in easily, right through the pastry |
| The time | 50 to 55 minutes at 375°F |
If the knife meets firm fruit, the dumplings need more time, even if the crust already looks done.
To wrap each one, set the apple in the middle of its dough square, fill the hollow core, then bring the four corners up over the top and pinch every seam shut. A finished dumpling looks like a small pastry bundle with the apple fully enclosed.
Tips for Success
How big should the dough squares be?
For homemade dough, about 7×7 inches each, cut from a rectangle rolled to about 21×14 inches. For store-bought dough, unroll it and divide it into 6 equal pieces.
How much filling goes in each apple?
One piece of butter and a scant tablespoon of the spiced sugar. Any spiced sugar left over is sprinkled on top after the sauce goes on.
When is the sauce ready to pour?
When it reaches a rolling boil and the sugar has dissolved. Whisk it often as it heats, then pour it evenly over the dumplings.
How do I seal the dough?
Bring the corners over the apple and pinch the edges together firmly so the filling stays inside.
Are these the same as crescent roll apple dumplings?
No. Crescent roll dumplings wrap apple slices in refrigerated crescent dough. These use whole apples and pie dough. If you want that quicker kind, see these apple dumplings made with crescent rolls.
Can You Make Apple Dumplings Ahead?
Yes. Assembled, unbaked dumplings can be covered and refrigerated for up to 24 hours. They can also be frozen for up to 2 months and thawed overnight in the refrigerator before baking.
Storage & Reheating
USDA FSIS says to refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours. Keep them in covered containers and use them within 3 to 4 days. To reheat, put the dumplings in a foil-covered pan in a 350°F oven for 10 to 12 minutes, and check that they reach 165°F.
What to Serve With It
For more warm apple desserts, try the apple slab pie, baked apple fritters or the easy cinnamon apple cake. If you like a dessert that bakes in its own sauce, there are 4-ingredient Depression era caramel dumplings and the 4-ingredient slow cooker caramel apple dump cake.
Frequently Asked Questions
What apples are best for dumplings?
Medium baking apples, such as Honeycrisp or Granny Smith.
How can I tell when the apple inside is tender?
Push a paring knife into a dumpling. If it goes into the apple easily and the pastry is golden, they are done.
What does a whole-apple dumpling look like, and how is the pastry wrapped?
It is a whole peeled, cored apple fully enclosed in pie dough. The dough corners are brought up over the apple and pinched to seal.
Can I use store-bought pie dough?
Yes. Unroll it and divide it into 6 equal pieces.
Final Notes
I test one dumpling with a paring knife before I take the dish out, because golden pastry does not always mean a tender apple. If you make them, leave a comment to tell me how they turned out or ask a question.
Old-Fashioned Apple Dumplings
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Ingredients
- 6 baking apples medium; Honeycrisp or Granny Smith; peel and core
- pie dough enough for one 9-inch double-crust pie; homemade or store-bought
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter cut into 6 equal pieces for the apples
- 6 tablespoons granulated sugar for the apple filling
- 1 teaspoon apple pie spice for the apple filling
- 1 cup apple juice unfiltered; apple cider is an alternative; for the sauce
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar lightly packed; for the sauce
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter for the sauce
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 375°F and grease a 13x9-inch baking dish. Peel and core the apples.
- If using homemade pie dough, roll it into a rectangle about 21x14 inches and cut it into 6 pieces about 7x7 inches each. If using store-bought pie dough, unroll it and divide it into 6 equal pieces.
- Stir the granulated sugar and apple pie spice together. Set an apple in the center of each dough piece. Put one piece of the 3 tablespoons of butter and a scant tablespoon of spiced sugar in each apple's center. Bring the dough corners over each apple and pinch the edges to seal. Place the dumplings in the prepared dish.
- Put the apple juice or cider, brown sugar and remaining 1/4 cup butter in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking frequently. When the sauce reaches a rolling boil and the sugar has dissolved, remove it from the heat and carefully pour it evenly over the dumplings. Sprinkle any remaining spiced sugar on top.
- Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, until the pastry is golden and a paring knife inserts easily into an apple. Let cool slightly and serve warm with the sauce.
