16 Old Fashioned Apple Desserts Grandma Baked Before Pumpkin Took Over Fall

Old fashioned apple desserts were the first thing grandma baked when the orchards came in, long before pumpkin spice took over every menu and coffee cup. She did not need a recipe card for most of them. A bag of apples, some butter, brown sugar, oats or a little flour, and a warm oven turned into crisp, cobbler, dumplings and pie that filled the whole house with cinnamon. Many of these recipes came from lean years, when cooks stretched stale bread, leftover pastry and bruised fruit into something worth sitting down for. Apple crisp is having a big comeback this fall, and the rest of these old fashioned apple desserts deserve one too. Here are 16 classics, with what you need and how to make each one, plus the apples that bake best. Tell us which one your family made every year..

Old Fashioned Apple Crisp With a Crunchy Oat Topping

Apple crisp is the dessert that kicked off fall baking season in a lot of kitchens, and it is easy to see why. Tart apples soften into a cinnamon syrup under a crunchy blanket of oats, butter and brown sugar, and the edges caramelize right onto the dish. Of all the old fashioned apple desserts, this is the most forgiving, since a crisp needs no crust, no rolling pin and no perfect knife work. Grandma made it in whatever pan was clean. Serve it warm with vanilla ice cream melting into every spoonful..

You will need: 6 medium baking apples, peeled and sliced; 1/4 cup sugar; 1 tablespoon lemon juice; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 1 cup rolled oats; 3/4 cup flour; 3/4 cup packed brown sugar; 1/2 cup cold butter, cubed; a pinch of salt; vanilla ice cream for serving.

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 350°F and butter a 9×13 dish. 2. Toss the apples with sugar, lemon juice and half the cinnamon, then spread them in the dish. 3. Mix oats, flour, brown sugar, salt and the rest of the cinnamon, then rub in the butter until clumpy. 4. Scatter the topping over the apples. 5. Bake 40 to 45 minutes until bubbling and golden. 6. Cool 10 minutes and serve with ice cream.

Apple Brown Betty, the Bread Crumb Dessert From Lean Times

Apple brown betty is an early American dessert built on thrift. Instead of pastry, cooks layered sliced apples with buttered bread crumbs, sugar and spice, then baked it until the crumbs turned crisp on top and soft and custardy underneath. It has been around since at least the 1800s and was a favorite way to use up stale bread. Allrecipes has gathered a whole collection of vintage apple recipes that readers still bake today, and this is one of the old fashioned apple desserts that keeps coming back. A drizzle of cream is all it needs.

You will need: 5 cups sliced apples; 2 cups fresh bread crumbs from day old bread; 1/3 cup melted butter; 3/4 cup brown sugar; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg; zest and juice of half a lemon; 1/4 cup water.

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 375°F and butter a 2 quart baking dish. 2. Toss the bread crumbs with the melted butter. 3. Mix brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and lemon zest. 4. Layer a third of the crumbs, half the apples and half the sugar mix, then repeat, ending with crumbs. 5. Pour the lemon juice and water over the top. 6. Cover and bake 30 minutes, then uncover and bake 20 to 25 minutes more until golden.

Apple Dumplings Baked in Cinnamon Syrup

Apple dumplings look fancy, but they were everyday farm food in Pennsylvania Dutch country and across the Midwest. Each apple is peeled, cored, filled with butter and cinnamon sugar, wrapped in pastry and baked in a sweet syrup that thickens around them in the pan. The bottoms turn soft and saucy while the tops bake flaky and golden. Among old fashioned apple desserts, few feel as generous as a whole apple in its own pastry coat. Grandma often poured a splash of cold milk over them, which sounds strange until you try it.

You will need: 6 small baking apples, peeled and cored; pastry for a double crust pie; 1/2 cup sugar mixed with 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 6 teaspoons butter; for the syrup: 1 1/2 cups water, 1 cup sugar, 1/4 cup butter and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon.

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 375°F. 2. Simmer the syrup ingredients for 5 minutes and set aside. 3. Roll the pastry and cut six 7 inch squares. 4. Set an apple on each square and fill the core with cinnamon sugar and a teaspoon of butter. 5. Bring the corners up and pinch the seams closed. 6. Place in a baking dish, pour the syrup around them and bake 40 to 45 minutes, basting twice.

Apple Pandowdy, the Pie You Push Down on Purpose

Apple pandowdy may be the strangest name in grandma’s recipe box, and the method is just as unusual. Squares of pastry go over spiced apples, and partway through baking you press them down into the bubbling juices. That step, often called dowdying, lets the pastry soak up the syrup and then crisp again on top. The dessert goes back to early New England, where cooks often sweetened it with molasses. It is one of those old fashioned apple desserts that looks rustic on purpose, so there is no way to get it wrong.

You will need: 6 cups sliced tart apples; 1/3 cup brown sugar; 2 tablespoons molasses or maple syrup; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg; 1 tablespoon cornstarch; 2 tablespoons butter; 1 sheet pie pastry; 1 tablespoon sugar; cream for serving.

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 375°F. 2. Toss the apples with brown sugar, molasses, spices and cornstarch, spread them in a buttered 10 inch skillet and dot with butter. 3. Lay the pastry on top, cut it into squares and sprinkle with sugar. 4. Bake 30 minutes. 5. Press the pastry pieces down into the juices with a spoon. 6. Bake 15 to 20 minutes more until crisp, then serve warm with cream.

Dutch Apple Pie With a Buttery Crumb Top

Dutch apple pie trades the top crust for a thick, buttery crumb topping that bakes into crunchy little clusters. Many bakers like it better than a double crust pie because there is no lattice to weave and no soggy lid to worry about. The filling gets a squeeze of lemon and plenty of cinnamon, and the crumb catches the juices that bubble up around the edges. It was a regular at church suppers and county fairs, and of all the old fashioned apple desserts on the table, it still tends to disappear first.

You will need: 1 unbaked 9 inch pie crust; 6 cups sliced apples; 1/2 cup sugar; 2 tablespoons flour; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 1 tablespoon lemon juice; for the crumb: 3/4 cup flour, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup cold butter and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon.

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 375°F. 2. Toss the apples with sugar, flour, cinnamon and lemon juice and pile them into the crust. 3. Rub the crumb ingredients together into pea sized clumps. 4. Pack the crumb over the apples. 5. Bake 50 to 60 minutes, covering the edges with foil if they brown too fast. 6. Cool at least 2 hours so the filling sets.

Old Fashioned Fresh Apple Cake With Brown Sugar Glaze

Fresh apple cake is the kind of recipe that was copied onto index cards and passed between neighbors. Chopped raw apples go straight into an oil based batter with cinnamon and pecans, and they melt into the cake as it bakes, keeping it moist for days. Southern cooks finished it with a warm brown sugar glaze poured over the hot cake so it soaks in and sets with a slightly crackly top. It is sturdy enough to carry to a potluck, and like many old fashioned apple desserts, it tastes even better the next day.

You will need: 2 cups flour; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1 1/2 cups sugar; 1 cup vegetable oil; 3 eggs; 2 teaspoons vanilla; 3 cups chopped peeled apples; 1 cup chopped pecans; for the glaze: 1/2 cup butter, 1 cup brown sugar and 1/4 cup milk.

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 350°F and grease a 9×13 pan. 2. Whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. 3. Beat the sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla, then stir in the dry mix. 4. Fold in the apples and pecans; the batter will be thick. 5. Bake 45 to 50 minutes. 6. Boil the glaze ingredients for 2 minutes and pour over the warm cake.

Apple Fritters With a Crackly Vanilla Glaze

Apple fritters were a fall treat at orchards and church fairs long before doughnut shops made them famous, and they are the most indulgent of the old fashioned apple desserts here. Diced apples are folded into a thick cinnamon batter, cooked by the spoonful and finished with a thin vanilla glaze that sets into a crackly shell. If frying makes you nervous, the same batter bakes nicely in a greased muffin tin at 400°F for about 15 minutes. For frying, use an electric fryer or a heavy pot with a thermometer, never fill it more than halfway, and keep kids well away from the hot oil.

You will need: 2 cups chopped apples; 1 1/2 cups flour; 1/4 cup sugar; 2 teaspoons baking powder; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 2/3 cup milk; 2 eggs; 2 tablespoons melted butter; oil for frying; for the glaze: 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons milk and 1 teaspoon vanilla.

How to make it: 1. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. 2. Stir in the milk, eggs and butter, then fold in the apples. 3. Heat 2 inches of oil to 350°F in an electric fryer or a heavy pot with a thermometer. 4. Carefully lower 1/4 cup scoops into the oil and cook 2 to 3 minutes per side. 5. Drain on a rack. 6. Whisk the glaze and dip the warm fritters.

Old Fashioned Stuffed Baked Apples

Stuffed baked apples might be the simplest of all old fashioned apple desserts, and they were a staple in Depression era kitchens because one apple made one serving with almost no waste. Core the apples, fill the centers with oats, brown sugar, butter and raisins, and let the oven do the rest. The skins wrinkle, the flesh turns soft enough to eat with a spoon, and the filling bakes into a sweet, crunchy cap. A splash of apple juice or water in the pan turns into its own syrup.

You will need: 4 large firm baking apples; 1/3 cup rolled oats; 1/4 cup brown sugar; 2 tablespoons chopped walnuts; 2 tablespoons raisins; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 3 tablespoons soft butter; 3/4 cup apple juice or water.

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 350°F. 2. Core the apples with a melon baller, leaving the bottoms intact. 3. Mix the oats, brown sugar, walnuts, raisins, cinnamon and butter. 4. Pack the filling into each apple. 5. Stand them in a baking dish and pour the juice around them. 6. Bake 40 to 50 minutes, basting once, until tender.

Apple Cobbler With Tender Biscuit Topping

Apple cobbler gets its name from the topping, which bakes into rough, cobbled rounds of biscuit dough over a bubbling fruit filling. Like most old fashioned apple desserts, it was born of practicality: grandma made it when she had too many apples and not enough time for pie. The bottoms of the biscuits soak up the cinnamon juices while the tops bake golden and crisp under a sprinkle of sugar. It is one of the heartiest old fashioned apple desserts, feeding a crowd from one pan, and it reheats well for breakfast the next morning, if any is left.

You will need: 8 cups sliced apples; 3/4 cup sugar; 2 tablespoons flour; 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon; 1 tablespoon lemon juice; for the topping: 1 1/2 cups flour, 1/4 cup sugar, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 6 tablespoons cold butter and 2/3 cup milk; coarse sugar.

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 375°F. 2. Toss the apples with sugar, flour, cinnamon and lemon juice and spread them in a 9×13 dish. 3. Bake 15 minutes to get the filling bubbling. 4. Cut the butter into the dry topping ingredients, then stir in the milk. 5. Drop spoonfuls of dough over the hot apples and sprinkle with coarse sugar. 6. Bake 30 to 35 minutes until the biscuits are golden.

Slow Cooker Apple Butter That Simmers All Day

Apple butter used to be an all day event, with families taking turns stirring a big kettle for hours. A slow cooker does the same job today without anyone standing over it. Apples cook down with brown sugar and warm spices until they turn dark, thick and glossy. There is no butter in it at all; the name comes from the smooth, spreadable texture. Spread it on toast or biscuits, swirl it into oatmeal or tuck a jar into a gift basket. A little goes a long way, and it is the only one of these old fashioned apple desserts you can spread on breakfast.

You will need: 5 pounds apples, peeled, cored and chopped; 1 cup brown sugar; 1/2 cup sugar; 2 teaspoons cinnamon; 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves; 1/4 teaspoon allspice; a pinch of salt; 1 tablespoon vanilla.

How to make it: 1. Pile the apples into a 6 quart slow cooker. 2. Mix the sugars, spices and salt and stir them into the apples. 3. Cover and cook on low for 10 hours, stirring once or twice. 4. Stir in the vanilla and blend smooth with an immersion blender. 5. Cook uncovered on low 1 to 2 hours more until thick. 6. Spoon into clean jars and refrigerate for up to 3 weeks.

Apple Hand Pies for the Lunch Pail

Apple hand pies were the original lunchbox dessert and the most portable of all old fashioned apple desserts. Farm families tucked them into lunch pails for school and field work because they traveled well and needed no plate or fork. Each one is a little pocket of flaky pastry wrapped around chopped, cinnamon spiced apples, crimped with a fork and baked until golden. You can make the pastry from scratch or use a ready made crust, and they freeze beautifully before baking, so you can bake a few at a time whenever the craving hits.

You will need: 2 cups finely chopped apples; 1/4 cup brown sugar; 1 tablespoon flour; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 1 teaspoon lemon juice; pastry for a double crust pie; 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon milk; coarse sugar.

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 400°F and line a sheet pan with parchment. 2. Cook the apples, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and lemon juice in a pan for 5 minutes until just soft, then cool. 3. Roll the pastry and cut it into rectangles. 4. Spoon filling onto half of them, top with the rest and crimp the edges with a fork. 5. Brush with egg wash, cut small vents and sprinkle with sugar. 6. Bake 18 to 22 minutes until golden.

Apple Spice Bundt Cake With Brown Sugar Glaze

Apple spice bundt cake had its big moment in the 1960s and 1970s, when fluted tube pans took over American kitchens. This version folds shredded apple and pecans into a cinnamon, nutmeg and clove batter, then gets a pour of brown sugar glaze that drips into every ridge. The cake stays tender for days under a cake dome, which made it a favorite for church coffee hours and holiday visitors. It belongs on any list of old fashioned apple desserts worth reviving. Grease the pan well, since a stuck cake is a heartbreak no glaze can hide.

You will need: 3 cups flour; 2 teaspoons cinnamon; 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg; 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 1 teaspoon salt; 1 1/4 cups oil; 2 cups sugar; 3 eggs; 2 teaspoons vanilla; 3 cups shredded apples; 1 cup chopped pecans; for the glaze: 1/4 cup butter, 1/2 cup brown sugar and 2 tablespoons cream.

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 350°F and grease and flour a 10 inch fluted tube pan. 2. Whisk the dry ingredients. 3. Beat the oil, sugar, eggs and vanilla, then stir in the dry mix. 4. Fold in the apples and pecans and spread the batter in the pan. 5. Bake 60 to 70 minutes, cool 15 minutes and turn out. 6. Simmer the glaze ingredients for 2 minutes, cool slightly and drizzle over the cake.

Depression Era Applesauce Cake With Raisins

Applesauce cake was a Depression era favorite because applesauce could stand in for some of the eggs and butter that were hard to come by. The result is a dark, moist spice cake packed with raisins and walnuts that keeps well for days. Old community cookbooks are full of versions, baked in loaf pans, square pans or layers. If you love thrifty old fashioned apple desserts like this one, you will also like these homemade Halloween candy recipes from grandma’s kitchen.

You will need: 2 cups flour; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves; 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/2 cup soft butter; 1 cup brown sugar; 1 egg; 1 1/2 cups unsweetened applesauce; 1 cup raisins; 1/2 cup chopped walnuts.

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 350°F and grease a 9 inch square pan. 2. Whisk the flour, baking soda, spices and salt. 3. Cream the butter and brown sugar, then beat in the egg. 4. Add the dry mix alternately with the applesauce. 5. Stir in the raisins and walnuts and spread in the pan. 6. Bake 40 to 45 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean, then dust with powdered sugar or add a simple glaze.

Apple Crumble Bars for the Bake Sale

Apple crumble bars take everything people love about crisp and make it easy to pack, slice and carry. One buttery oat mixture does double duty: most of it is pressed into the pan as a shortbread style crust, and the rest is crumbled over a layer of spiced apples. Once cooled, the bars cut into clean squares that hold together for bake sales, lunchboxes and holiday cookie trays. Of all the old fashioned apple desserts here, these are the smartest way to use up the last few apples in the fruit bowl.

You will need: 2 cups flour; 1 1/2 cups rolled oats; 1 cup brown sugar; 1/2 teaspoon baking soda; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1 cup melted butter; 4 cups diced apples; 1/4 cup sugar; 1 tablespoon cornstarch; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; powdered sugar for dusting.

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 350°F and line a 9×13 pan with parchment. 2. Mix the flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda, salt and butter into crumbs. 3. Press two thirds of it into the pan and bake 12 minutes. 4. Toss the apples with sugar, cornstarch and cinnamon and spread over the crust. 5. Scatter the remaining crumbs on top. 6. Bake 35 to 40 minutes, cool completely and cut into bars.

Old Fashioned Skillet Apple Pie With a Caramel Bottom

Skillet apple pie is how many farm cooks baked pie before every kitchen had a stack of glass pie plates. Butter and brown sugar melt in the bottom of a cast iron skillet, a crust goes in on top of that, then the apples and a lattice top. As it bakes, the brown sugar turns into a caramel that soaks into the bottom crust, so the pie comes out crisp and sticky underneath. It is the showstopper among old fashioned apple desserts. Let it rest before slicing so the filling sets.

You will need: 1/2 cup butter; 1 cup brown sugar; pastry for a double crust pie; 6 cups sliced apples; 3/4 cup sugar; 2 tablespoons flour; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 1 egg white; 1 tablespoon sugar for the top.

How to make it: 1. Heat the oven to 350°F. 2. Melt the butter in a 10 inch cast iron skillet in the oven, then stir in the brown sugar. 3. Lay one crust over the brown sugar. 4. Toss the apples with sugar, flour and cinnamon and pile them into the crust. 5. Top with a lattice, brush with egg white and sprinkle with sugar. 6. Bake about 1 hour, covering with foil if it browns too fast, then cool 30 minutes.

The Best Apples for Old Fashioned Apple Desserts and How to Keep Slices White

Choosing the right apples is the secret behind the best old fashioned apple desserts. Firm, tart varieties such as Granny Smith, Northern Spy, Jonathan, Braeburn and Honeycrisp hold their shape in pies, crisps and dumplings, while softer apples like McIntosh cook down into smooth applesauce and apple butter. Many grandmothers mixed two kinds for deeper flavor. To keep sliced apples white while you prep, drop them into a bowl of cold water with a squeeze of lemon juice or a pinch of salt, then drain before baking.

You will need: Firm tart apples for pies and crisps; softer apples for sauce and apple butter; 4 cups cold water; 1 tablespoon lemon juice or 1/2 teaspoon salt; a sharp paring knife or apple corer.

How to make it: 1. Mix the cold water with lemon juice or salt in a large bowl. 2. Peel, core and slice the apples. 3. Drop the slices into the water as you go. 4. Let them soak for up to 10 minutes. 5. Drain well and pat dry before tossing with sugar and spice. 6. Mix tart and sweet apples for the best flavor.