FALL IS FINALLY HERE!
In PA Dutch country, that means apple dumplings. Sweet, flaky pastry wrapped around tart, Granny Smith apples and drenched in a brown sugar cinnamon syrup. If anyone tries to serve you an apple dumpling WITHOUT the syrup, just say no. They’re imposters and not a true apple dumpling from Lancaster County.
In our house, we serve them steaming hot with ice cold milk poured overtop. The hot apples with the cold milk are a thing of perfection and something we look forward to all year long. It’s autumn wrapped up in a dessert.
I’ll be honest, I don’t make apple dumplings often. They’re somewhat labor intensive with all the peeling, coring, dough-making and whatnot. If you’ve ever worked with gluten-free pie dough, I think you’ll enjoy my recipe. It’s pretty tough as far as gluten-free goes and it tastes amazing. But, as all things gluten-free seem to be, it’s not as strong as wheat dough so working with it takes a bit of finesse. It’s the perfect dough for that rustic, fall look.
Look at all the syrup these dumplings are swimming in! It’s what makes them so Lancaster County!
Once you put the dumplings in the dish, you’ll bake them until lightly browned on top. While they are baking, you’ll need to make the syrup. It will have to simmer for at least 20 minutes to take on the cinnamon flavor from the sticks if you use them. The syrup will cook another 15 minutes once you pour it overtop of the dumplings.
These dumplings are best served immediately, but they can be stored for a day or two. The dough will continue to get softer but they’ll still be delicious!
[tasty-recipe id=”4072″]