All the deliciousness of apple dumplings but without all the work! You’ll love these Easy Apple Dumplings!
As a child, I loved watching my mom make old fashioned apple dumplings. Seeing her skilled hands mix up the dough from scratch, cut it into squares and then carefully wrap each square around a big, cored apple, filled with sugary goodness, totally fascinated me.
I can still see her bending over the open oven using her baster to spread the syrup over the dumplings as they baked. We all loved when she took the time to make her apple dumplings, but it didn’t happen often because of how time-consuming they were to make.
Several years ago an older friend of mine, who is known for her good cooking, told me that she had made a dessert that tasted like old fashioned apple dumplings, but was much easier. I was all ears and of course, had to get the recipe and try it myself!
And goodness, these Easy Apple Dumplings are just perfectly delicious! I mean, how could they not be with all that gooey, caramel like syrup?!
We love eating this easy apple dessert piping hot with lots of vanilla ice cream. But some people prefer pouring milk over it instead. Either way, I think you’ll find that it’s quite delicious!
Oh, and if you are like me and not so good at remembering to get the butter out ahead of time to soften, try this easy method of softening butter quickly! So simple!
Other desserts that you’ll love:
- Apple Dump Cake from Scratch
- No Bake Pumpkin Cheesecakes
- Pumpkin Crunch Cake from Scratch
- Best Ever Moist Chocolate Cake- no eggs, no milk, no oil
- Classic Blueberry Buckle
Easy Apple Dumplings
Easy Apple Dumpling Dessert
Ingredients
SAUCE
- 1 1/4 c. brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp. cornstarch
- 2 c. cold water
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 1 Tbsp. butter
DUMPLING MIXTURE
- 2 c. flour
- 1/4 c. sugar
- 1 Tbsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/3 c. butter, softened (or shortening)
- 5 c. apples, peeled and chopped
- 3/4 c. milk
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla
TOPPING
- 3 Tbsp. sugar
- 2 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
Instructions
FOR SAUCE:
- Combine the first 3 ingredients in saucepan and cook until slightly thickened. (It won’t thicken much at all.)
- Add vanilla and butter. Stir until butter is melted.
- Pour into a greased 9×13 baking dish.
FOR DUMPLINGS:
- Meanwhile, make dumpling mixture by mixing together first 5 ingredients until crumbly. (A pastry blender makes this really easy!) You’ll want to use a really large bowl for this since you’ll be adding the apples too. Something 10 cups or so works well…even a kettle!
- Add apples and stir.
- Combine milk and vanilla and stir into the mixture just until moistened.
- Drop by spoonfuls over sauce in dish.
FOR TOPPING:
- Combine sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over the top of dessert.
- Bake at 350° for 35 to 40 minutes.
- Serve warm with ice cream or milk.
Roberta
Can this be frozen
Lydia Beiler
I’ve never frozen the finished recipe. I would be concerned that the dumpling mixture would get soggy.
Carol
My family loved this dessert. Especially since it wasn’t too sweet. Thank you for this easy recipe.
Lydia Beiler
So glad to hear that you all enjoyed it, Carol! Thanks for taking the time to let me know.
Savannah
This has become a fall staple in our house! It tastes as good as apple dumplings but less work!
Lydia Beiler
So happy to hear that you love the recipe, Savannah! It’s one that our family enjoys all through fall and winter. In fact, a friend is sharing some apples with me this weekend and this is top on the list of things to make with them.
Kelley
This looks amazing!!! I have it “pinned” and will be trying it out this weekend! So excited!
Lydia Beiler
I hope you enjoy it, Kelley! 🙂
Shirley
Could you do this in a slow cooker?
Lydia Beiler
I’m guessing that you could, but I have no idea how you’d adjust the recipe for that.
Lydia Beiler
I’m guessing that you could, but I have no idea how you’d adjust the recipe for that.
Miranda
Trying to decide if this would work one for one with gluten free flour. Can you tell me what the end product is like texturely ? Is it like cobbler? Maybe GF Bisquick would work? So far gluten free dumplings have gone badly.
ThriftyFrugalMom
Yes, it’s kind of like a cobbler. I don’t have experience with making gluten-free things but I would think that this would work well.
Sarah
Yum! This looks amazing! I can’t wait to try it!
ThriftyFrugalMom
Thanks, Sarah!