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The Best Apple Dessert in the World
What Did Your Family Call these?
My apple trees are completely covered with ripe fruit ready to pick. As I started pulling a few off I began thinking about how to best use them. When I was a small child my mother use to make a really simple dessert that I adored. She would peel and core an apple then roll it in cinnamon sugar, stuff it with sweetened butter, wrap it in a thin skin of pie pastry, and bake it. It had all the great characteristics we love about apple pies but was quicker to make.
It was only later in life that I learned this apple dessert was beloved by both the French and the Americans and went by several different names. In France, they are called ‘Bourdons aux Pommes’ (Bourdelots) and even apple purses. In the United States, they are commonly known as apple dumplings.
The good news is they are very easy to make and quick to make. All you need are apples, sugar, butter, and pie dough or puff pastry. You can make these with apples or even pears. If you want to make it a bit fancier, sprinkle the apples with a tablespoon of fine calvados.
Make your own caramel sauce or buy one like Toad Farm Traditional Goat’s Milk Caramel Sauce. I even saw a French Canadian variation that I want to try made with a maple syrup caramel.
