These 40+ easy apple desserts are tried and true recipes. The classics are all here, from a buttery apple crisp with oats to a lattice-topped apple pie and an apple and blackberry crumble that comes out of the oven bubbling at the edges. You’ll also find fritters, cheesecakes, dump cakes, hand pies, and a batch of crockpot applesauce for the last of the bag.
Some of these recipes can be whipped up in under twenty minutes, like apple pie bites rolled up in crescent dough and drizzled with caramel. Others, like caramel apple trifle, get assembled the night before a holiday so the layers have time to set. However many apples you picked and however much time you have this week, there’s something here to put them to good use.
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Caramel Apple Crisp Bites
These Caramel Apple Crisp Bites bake in a mini muffin pan, so every one comes out already portioned inside its own graham cracker cup. I like making them a day ahead because they hold up well in the fridge and only need a caramel drizzle right before serving.
Apple Delight
My Apple Delight recipe layers a buttery graham cracker and pecan crust with sweet cream cheese, spiced apples, and a cloud of whipped topping. It needs a few hours in the fridge so the layers firm up and slice cleanly, which makes it a perfect choice when you need to make your dessert ahead of time.
Apple Enchiladas
These Apple Enchiladas wrap warm apple filling in soft flour tortillas, then bake under a buttery caramel sauce until the tops turn golden and caramelized. Serve them warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream so the sauce has something cold to melt into.
Apple Pie Cookies
My famous Apple Pie Cookies bring you everything you love about apple pie in a handheld size, right down to the tiny lattice tops and a sprinkle of sparkling sugar. They travel beautifully, so I make them when I need something for a bake sale or a holiday cookie box.
Old Fashioned Apple Crisp
Old Fashioned Apple Crisp is the first recipe I make once apples come into season, with tender Granny Smiths tucked under a buttery oat topping. Cinnamon runs through both the filling and the crumble, so the warm spice comes through in every spoonful.
Applesauce Cake
This is the old-fashioned cake your grandmother likely had tucked in her recipe box, soft and heavily spiced under a thick swirl of cinnamon cream cheese frosting. Cut Applesauce Cake into squares for a potluck and watch how quickly the pan empties.
Apple Brownies
Chewy in the middle, buttery at the edges, and packed with cinnamon apples under a maple glaze that sets into a sweet, delicate crust. Apple Brownies are the pan you can bring when you want something a little more interesting than the usual dessert bar.
Caramel Apple Eclair Cake
All the flavor of apple pie with no crust to roll and no oven to heat, Caramel Apple Eclair Cake is a total lifesaver on holidays when every oven rack is already full. Fifteen minutes of layering is all it takes, and the fridge handles the rest.
Applesauce Bundt Cake
Salted caramel gets soaked straight into my Applesauce Bundt Cake while it’s still warm, so the sweetness runs all the way through. Finish it with one more drizzle before serving, and you have a cake so pretty, it looks like it came from a bakery.
Caramel Apple Dump Cake
With ten minutes of prep, one pan, and no mixing bowl to wash, Caramel Apple Dump Cake is the easiest fall dessert. It comes out of the oven golden and bubbling at the edges, and with a scoop of vanilla ice cream melting into it, it’s hard for anyone to turn down.
Caramel Apple Dessert Cups
Everyone gets their own little cup of apple crisp, no slicing and no serving spoon required. Caramel Apple Dessert Cups come together without turning on the oven and travel beautifully to classroom parties, tailgates, and office potlucks.
Bakery-Style Apple Fritter Bread
All the cinnamon-apple flavor of a bakery fritter, in a loaf you can slice and eat with your morning coffee. Bakery-Style Apple Fritter Bread stays soft for days, so it’s great to have on hand for busy school mornings and holidays.
Apple Cheesecake Bars
Shortbread crust, thick vanilla cheesecake, cinnamon apples, and buttery streusel, all in one square. Apple Cheesecake Bars give you cheesecake without the springform pan, and a caramel drizzle over the top makes them dessert-table worthy.
Apple Fries
Crispy cinnamon-sugar coating on the outside, warm soft apple inside, and ready in about half an hour. One batch of Apple Fries makes plenty for a crowd, and they disappear fast when there’s caramel sauce nearby for dipping.
Caramel Apple Pie
Melted caramel gets stirred right into a tart apple filling in this Caramel Apple Pie. Instead of a top crust, this pie is finished with a buttery crumble, so every slice has a bit of crunch alongside the gooey caramel.
Best Apple Pie Filling Recipe
Once you’ve tasted homemade, the canned stuff is hard to go back to. Twenty minutes on the stovetop gives you a quart of apple pie filling good for far more than pies. Spoon it over ice cream or French toast casserole just as happily.
Applesauce Cookies
These Applesauce Cookies are soft, cake-like, and finished with tangy cream cheese frosting, The dough freezes well too, so you can bake a few at a time whenever the craving hits.
Apple Donuts
Skip the trip to the orchard stand. These baked Apple Donuts go from bowl to plate in twenty minutes, and you can finish them with either a cinnamon sugar coating or a simple sweet icing.
Caramel Apple Dip
Five minutes of work and you have a dessert everyone crowds around. Layers of sweetened cream cheese, thick caramel, and crunchy toffee bits make Caramel Apple Dip the easiest thing you can bring to a party, and a platter of apple slices is all it needs.
Upside Down Apple Cake
When you plip it onto a plate, the sliced Honeycrisp apples come out caramelized in cinnamon butter, arranged in a pretty spiral across the top. That moment makes Upside Down Apple Cake the cake to bake when company is coming, though a slice with morning coffee is just as good.
Taffy Apple Salad
Chopped red and green apples, pineapple, marshmallows, and roasted peanuts get folded into a creamy vanilla dressing, then finished with a caramel drizzle. Taffy Apple Salad works as a sweet side or a dessert, and it can sit in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.
Apple Pie Bites
Five minutes of prep, thirteen minutes in the oven, and dessert is done. Apple Pie Bites are made using crescent dough, and while they’re tasty enough to set out at a party, they’re also perfect for tucking into lunchboxes.
Campfire Apple Crisp In Foil Packets
Nothing beats warm apple crisp eaten under the stars. You can assemble these Campfire Apple Crisp Foil Packets at home before you leave, and twenty minutes over the coals is all they need to bake into some of the best apple crisp you’ve ever eaten.
Fried Apples
This is the Cracker Barrel version; thick Granny Smith slices cooked slowly in butter and brown sugar until tender, then finished with a glaze that clings to every piece. Fried Apples belong at the breakfast table, alongside pork chops, or spooned warm over vanilla ice cream.
Apple Pie
Bake this Apple Pie the day before you plan to serve it, and the juices will firm up beautifully, giving you clean slices every time. It’s got a classic lattice top, sanding sugar for crunch, and a mix of Granny Smith and Honeycrisps so the filling stays sweet and tart at once.
Caramel Apple Cheesecake
Here’s the showstopper for your holiday table. Caramel Apple Cheesecake is made with a cinnamon graham crust under a thick layer of dulce de leche, with spiced Honeycrisp apples and chopped pecans spooned over the top just before serving for a bakery-style look.
Mini Apple Cheesecakes
Bake these in a muffin tin and everyone gets a whole cheesecake to themselves, crust, apple filling, streusel, and all. Mini Apple Cheesecakes also keep in the freezer for three months, so you can pull out a few whenever guests turn up.
Apple Dapple Cake
The name alone will make you smile, and one bite explains why this vintage recipe has stuck around for decades. Fresh Granny Smiths and pecans run all through Apple Dapple Cake, and a spread of dulce de leche seeps into the top while it’s still warm.
Apple Betty
Got stale bread and a bag of orchard apples? Apple Betty turns both into a warm, bubbling dessert with a buttery, crisp topping. For bonus points, it can be assembled a day ahead and baked when you’re ready for it.
Apple Fritter Rings
Nine minutes start to finish, and the batter comes together with a can of ginger ale. Apple Fritter Rings come out of the oil golden and crisp with a tender apple center, then get a shower of cinnamon sugar while they’re still hot.
Apple Fritters
Ever bitten into a fritter at the fair and wished you could have that same treat at home? Apple Fritters come out crispy and golden with tender Granny Smith chunks inside, and the vanilla glaze sets into a sweet shell while they cool.
Crockpot Applesauce
Peel and chop, then let the slow cooker take it from there. Crockpot Applesauce fills the whole house with cinnamon while it simmers, and you can mash it chunky or blend it smooth depending on what your family likes.
Hasselback Apples
Thin apple slices are fanned, brushed with cinnamon butter, and piled with brown sugar pecans. Hasselback Apples look like something from a restaurant, but only four ingredients stand between you and a plate full of them.
Air Fryer Hand Pies (Apple)
Refrigerated pie crust plus a can of apple filling gets you twelve golden hand pies in about half an hour. Kids love helping cut and crimp these Air Fryer Hand Pies, and they freeze uncooked so you can prep ahead for busy fall holidays and festivals.
Apple And Blackberry Crumble
Tart blackberries and sweet Honeycrisp apples bubble up together under a golden, buttery topping. Melted butter stirred into the crumble on this Apple and Blackberry Crumble means no dry pockets of flour on top, just an even, crisp finish over the fruit.
Caramel Apple Trifle
My Caramel Apple Trifle can be assembled the day before your party. Twelve servings of cake, vanilla pudding, spiced apples, caramel, and pecans, all stacked up into a stunning centerpiece dessert.
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