I made this with friends around Christmas, and we all agreed it was very good, very simple, and would be something you could sort of do some prep work ahead of time and then throw together easily enough for a nice dessert during a dinner party type evening.

The way the recipe was originally written was brief and not super descriptive, but called for bringing all the ingredients in the apple mixture to a boil, and didn’t say if you then let it boil for a bit, or got straight to adding the dumplings. When I made it with my friends, we pretty quickly added the dumpling mixture. I wondered if cooking the apple mixture a bit longer first would make it a bit thicker, so I tried making it again, and this time letting it boil for 20 minutes before adding the dumplings to cook. The liquid did thicken up a bit, but really the larger improvement was that you get much more of a browned butter taste, that’s great! So, I’d say that’s the way to go!

Ingredients:

Caramel Apple Mixture:

• 1/2 cup butter (I only ever have unsalted)
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup water
• 2 cups apples, diced

Dumplings:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

In a large saucepan/pot/dutch oven (something with a lid), combine the butter, brown sugar, milk, and diced apples over medium-high heat.

Bring to a boil, and continue to cook at a low boil for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. It’s honestly ok to get the first 4 ingredients in and heating while you chop the apples as long as you take a break from chopping to stir once in a while.

While the caramel apple mixture boils, combine the dry goods from the dumplings in a small bowl, and the liquids in a measuring cup.

Stir together until no dry bits still exist.

Spoon big spoonfuls of batter into the boiling caramel apple mixture, trying to space them out evenly.

Cover the pot, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 15 minutes. After that, the surface of the dumplings may look wet, but that’s probably just external mixture, they should be cooked through.

Scoop, and serve with some vanilla ice cream!

Caramel Apple Dumplings

From The Masterson’s Market Cookbook – Carol may have given me that? It’s from WY!

Caramel Apple Mixture:

• 1/2 cup butter (I only ever have unsalted)
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup water
• 2 cups apples, diced

Dumplings:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

In a large saucepan/pot/dutch oven (something with a lid), combine the butter, brown sugar, milk, and diced apples over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, and continue to cook at a low boil for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While the caramel apple mixture boils, combine the dry goods from the dumplings in a small bowl, and the liquids in a measuring cup. Stir together until no dry bits still exist. Spoon big spoonfuls of batter into the boiling caramel apple mixture, trying to space them out evenly. Cover the pot, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 15 minutes. Scoop, and serve with some vanilla ice cream!