Apple Dumplings

[Ladybug]

I'm making a few desserts for a church thing and really wanted to make apple dumplings - you know, Rome apples, peeled, cored and stuffed with walnuts/brown sugar/cinnamon and wrapped in pie dough. The recipe (Rose Levy Beranbaum) says something about them being best served right away. Is that a hard and fast rule? The best I can do is to bake them an hour or two before consumption. I already bought the stuff and I'm all psyched to make them and then I saw that last little line and thought, "Hmmmm. Argh! Oh! eGullet folks will know!" Help me out, folks!

P.S. How about reheating (if waiting to eat them is okay)?

[Ladybug]

Oh - just to add- I've never made apple dumplings before. I've made plenty of apple pie and even turnovers, but never a dumpling. I'm planning on using Beranbaum's Flaky Cream Cheese Pie Crust, which I have made before and am comfortable with.

[sherribabee]

Apple dumplings are a staple at my family's Thanksgiving dinner.

My aunt prepares and bakes them at her home (removes them from the oven about 5-10 minutes before they are finished), covers the dish with foil and brings them over (it's about an hour-long trip to our house). When she gets to our house, she puts them in the oven to finish them up. They always turn out perfectly this way.

I would imagine that preparing them too far in advance would not be such a good idea for the following reasons:

1. they're best served piping hot

2. the sugar and butter make a sticky sauce that will make the crust soggy after and hour or so.

[excelsior]

I successfully served apple dumplings once, hot out of the oven. I too am curious if anyone has a secret about preventing the dough from softening up. You might want to try Cameo apples if they are available... they don't look pretty but they are tremendous eating and will bake better than will a Rome.

Edited November 20, 2003 by excelsior (log)

[Ladybug]

I ended up changing up the menu at the last second because I ran out of time. I made baked apples instead. I actually did bake 4 apples with pastry on them and they turned out great but the clock was ticking. I made this on a Sunday afternoon before the evening service and was actually providing a whole dinner, which is how I happened to run out of time. The baked apples turned out fine - I wasn't wowed, but I wasn't embarrassed either. Oh well! The menu (very plebian) was ribs, BBQ chicken, baked sweet potatoes with cinnamon brown sugar butter, garlic cheese bread and baked apples stuffed with pecans, brown sugar and butter and served with caramel sauce. I also made an "Atkins" custard for those who weren't eating sugar.

[helenjp]

Apple dumplings! I'm thinking of making some home-made marzipan to soak up juices and make a tasty layer between apple and pastry. Bad idea?

[Swisskaese]

Apple dumplings! I'm thinking of making some home-made marzipan to soak up juices and make a tasty layer between apple and pastry. Bad idea?

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I am not sure if that will work. I crush up amaretti cookies or ginger cookies and place them on the bottom of the pastry and place the apple on top of that. I fill my apples with pastry cream and then cover them with puff pastry. I serve it on a base of creme anglaise.

[Tweety69bird]

Apple dumplings! I'm thinking of making some home-made marzipan to soak up juices and make a tasty layer between apple and pastry. Bad idea?

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I am not sure if that will work. I crush up amaretti cookies or ginger cookies and place them on the bottom of the pastry and place the apple on top of that. I fill my apples with pastry cream and then cover them with puff pastry. I serve it on a base of creme anglaise.

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It sure sounds good though... I would try it just to see.