Quick and Easy Apple Desserts Recipes

Get ready to fall in love with these irresistible apple desserts! From caramel apples to candy apples, apple crisps to apple pie, this recipe roundup has everything you need to satisfy your sweet tooth this season. Perfect for cozy fall days and festive gatherings!

Mention the word fall and my mind turns to bonfires, cozy sweaters, curling up under a blanket with a good book and, of course, apples. Lots and lots of apples. I’m always dreaming up recipes with apples that I can whip up to satisfy a never-ending craving for this autumn fruit. If it includes caramel and apples, even better!

Whether you go apple picking in an orchard, stop by a farm stand, or just pick up a sack from the supermarket, here you’ll find plenty of easy apple desserts for just about every occasion.

Best Apples for Baking 

In my opinion, the best apples for baking are Granny Smith apples. They have some tartness, so they won’t make your dessert overpoweringly sweet and they’re crisp so they will hold their shape during baking. Plus, they’re usually inexpensive and readily available.

Other crisp, tart apples that would be good for baking are Pink Lady, Fuji, Gala and Honeycrisp.

Apples that are soft, mealy and bland, like McIntosh and Red Delicious, are not good for baking as they’ll get mushy when they’re cooked. Save these for eating raw or making into applesauce. 

Apple Preparation Tips

Knowing how to prepare apples for recipes is half the battle. 

Peeling: Use a paring knife or a vegetable peeler (a serrated one works particularly well on tough skin) to remove the apple peel. The most efficient way is to start at the top of the apple and peel horizontally in a spiral motion around the apple. 

Coring: If you bake with apples frequently, an apple corer tool is a good investment. This tube-shaped tool, with a blade on the end, will remove just the center core from the apple, leaving the rest intact. It’s good for whole baked apples or to maximize the amount of fruit you have to work with. If you don’t have a corer, use a chef’s knife to cut the apple from stem to end into four pieces, making your cuts just next to the core. Then you can slice each section of apple according to the recipe’s instructions. 

How do I keep apples from turning brown?

As the flesh of a peeled apple is exposed to air, it will begin to brown. This doesn’t really matter if you’re baking the apples in a recipe, but if you prefer to keep the apple flesh its original pale color, fill a large bowl with water and squeeze the juice of a lemon into the water. Keep the peeled or cut apples submerged in the water until needed. The acid content of the water will prevent browning. 

Quick and Easy Apple Dessert Recipes

Easy Salted Caramel Apple Tart: A dusting of salt enhances the sweetness of caramel. In this recipe, sea salt is sprinkled over the caramel-drizzled tart. For an even more sophisticated twist, make this recipe with homemade bourbon caramel sauce.

Apple Pie Egg Rolls: Equally delicious as an afternoon snack or a full-fledged dessert (topped with ice cream or whipped cream, perhaps?), a cinnamon-spiked apple filling is rolled up in egg roll wrappers and deep-fried. 

Easy Caramel Apples: This classic carnival treat needs only three ingredients. Get creative with the toppings to dress them up, from sprinkles to melted chocolate drizzle to nuts.

Easy Homemade Candy Apples: With their crunchy, bright-red candy coating, these old-fashioned treats are another carnival classic.

Crescent Roll Apple Dumplings: Prepared dough is a shortcut to a heavenly dessert featuring apples and a buttery brown-sugar sauce. Whip up a pan of no-churn vanilla ice cream to serve on the side.

Leftover Cranberry Sauce and Apple Crisp: Use up the rest of the cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving in this sweet and tart baked dessert that has a dramatic, ruby-red hue. Garnish it with sugared cranberries for an impressive presentation.

Salted Caramel Apple Hand Pies: The buttery sweetness of caramel is the perfect complement to tart apple in these perfectly portioned pastries.

Apple Fritter Rings with Caramel Sauce: Apple fritters are a country fair favorite, and these deep-fried rings are a faithful adaptation. Serve them with homemade or store-bought caramel sauce or butterscotch sauce for dipping.

Apple Cinnamon Banana Bread: For a lighter apple dessert, whip up a batch of banana bread studded with apple chunks. It’s a good grab-and-go snack or lunchbox treat.

Caramel Apple Bread Pudding: Rich and tender brioche bread makes a lush, gooey foundation for bread pudding drizzled with caramel sauce and topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of homemade whipped cream (or both, no judgment here!)

Easy Apple and Pear Crisp: Two fall fruits unite for a baked treat topped with crispy cinnamon-dusted oats. 

Caramel Apple Cheesecake Dip: If you prefer your dessert in dippable form, look no further than this creamy, sweet dip. Scoop it up with sliced apples, pretzels, graham crackers or store-bought or homemade butter cookies. 

30-Minute Apple Fritters: Folks will be gobbling these crisp, powdered sugar-dusted fritters as fast as you can fry ‘em. I love these alongside a steaming mug of spiked apple cider.

Easy Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars: Cool and creamy cheesecake is the basis for this twist on the classic caramel apple. The recipe is good for making ahead for a party.

Muffin Tin Mini Apple Pies: These individual pies, baked up in a muffin tin, are as cute as a button. Individual lattice crusts are a little extra work, but they add to the charm of these diminutive pastries.

Easy Caramel Apple Slab Pie: Using a baking sheet instead of a pie tin lets you bake up enough pie for a crowd. This recipe uses store-bought pie dough as a shortcut. 

Easy Apple Turnovers: Store-bought puff pastry saves time and effort for flaky, fruit-filled pastries that are delicious for dinner or brunch. 

Apple Cinnamon Roll Bake: A can of store-bought cinnamon rolls combines with fresh apples and custard for a dish of gooey deliciousness. 

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