While it may be true that autumn is still six days away — and at least in my neck of the woods, the forecast doesn’t show much sign of the changing season — it turns out there’s no reason why you should have to wait. Why? Because today is National Apple Dumpling Day, and as we all know, apples somehow just mean fall.
The basic idea for today’s recipe has appeared in many places over the years. The Pioneer Woman and Paula Deen each have their own versions, and you’ll find lots more all around the internet. I’ve tweaked the ingredients and measurements to suit my tastes (and also because I’m pretty much incapable of following a recipe). It’s made with everyday pantry staples you probably have at home, or can easily find in any grocery store. Let me forewarn that you may read this and think there’s been a misprint, because certain ingredients seem … well … improbable. But I’m asking you to trust me. Just a tiny bit. The results will be worth it.
Easy Apple Dumplings
Filling:
- 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
- 6 Tbsp. dark brown sugar, lightly packed
- 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp. kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
- 1/8-1/4 tsp. freshly ground nutmeg (to taste … I prefer lots but you may not)
- a pinch of ground clove
- 4 Gala apples, peeled and cut into chunks
Preheat the oven to 350°.
Add the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, ginger, nutmeg, and clove to a small bowl. 
Mix together until well-combined.
Peel and cut the apples. You want them relatively consistent in size so they cook evenly. I’ve found that a good size is 24 pieces per apple — quarter the apples, slice each quarter lengthwise, then cut those pieces into 3 chunks. Place the pieces into a bowl. When you’ve finished peeling and cutting up all four apples, add the brown sugar / cinnamon mixture.
Toss the apples with the spice mixture until every piece of apple is coated, and set aside.
Dumplings:
- 2 cans (8 oz. each) of crescent roll dough — buy the dough sheets if you can find them; otherwise, you can use cans of 8 crescent rolls
Lightly grease a 9″ x 13″ baking pan.
Open the cans of crescent rolls. If you were able to find the sheets, you’ll need to spread out the dough and cut it into quarters, like so:
If you’re using dough that has been perforated to make crescent rolls, you’ll need to separate the dough into four sections of 2 rolls, then press together the center line until the dough comes together in a rectangle.
Portion out a good amount of the apple mixture into the center of one of the dough squares. Bring in two opposite corners and pinch them together in the middle. Next, bring the short sides of the dough toward the middle, then finish by bringing up the last two corners. Pinch the dough together so it stays closed:
Transfer the dumpling into the prepared pan, turning it over so the seams face down. Continue until you’ve made 8 dumplings. (Note: you may have a bit of the apple filling left over. If so, just set it aside for later.)
Sauce:
- 1 c. (2 sticks) butter, melted
- 1/2 c. dark brown sugar, lightly packed
- 1 c. (8 oz.) Mountain Dew soda
- sprinkle of nutmeg
- sprinkle of cinnamon
Melt butter in the microwave or a saucepan, then add the brown sugar and stir until well-combined. Slowly pour the butter / sugar mixture over the dumplings in the pan, making sure you cover each one thoroughly. Sprinkle the top of each dumpling with a bit of cinnamon, then grate a little nutmeg on top.
Measure one cup (8 oz.) of Mountain Dew. If you can get the “throwback” version, or find some that was bottled in Mexico, either of those are made with cane sugar and you can avoid corn syrup. Slowly pour it into the spaces between the dumplings — not over the top, please, or you’ll wash off all the lovely cinnamon and nutmeg. At this point, if you have any of the apple filling left over, tuck those pieces down in the same cracks between the dumplings, then drizzle any remaining juice from the filling over the top, too.
Place the baking dish in the oven and bake at 350° for 50 minutes, until the dumplings are a deep golden brown.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool at least 10-15 minutes. The liquids in the pan will thicken during cooling.
This recipe makes eight generous portions. Serve while still warm (although you can certainly make it ahead and serve at room temperature if that works best with your schedule). You might want to add whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream, but this is one dessert that’s perfectly delicious au naturel. Leftovers should go in the fridge.
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Easy Apple Dumplings (Printable Recipe)
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