Mini caramel apple pies are the perfect autumn treat! If you've got 2 apples, a roll of puff pastry and some pantry staples like brown sugar and butter you can be tucking into these apple tarts in no time. Spiced up with the warming taste of cinnamon and nutmeg along with buttery caramel flavours, these mini apple pies are sure to become a family favourite!
I'm loving this recipe for caramel apple pies. Thanks to a roll of shop-bought puff pastry, they take only minutes to assemble. And they are so tasty - you could be excused from eating a second one!
They are not only ideal for enjoying with a cup of tea or coffee, but they make a delicious dessert when served covered in custard or topped with a scoop of ice cream. They are also great for popping into a lunchbox or taking along on a picnic.
The caramel taste comes to the fore thanks to the apples being cooked in brown sugar and butter until they are coated in a thick and sticky sauce.
Once cooled, the apples are formed into tarts using a roll of puff pastry, before being baked in the oven.
One roll of puff pastry will easily make 12 caramel apple pies because you can easily cut 12 rounds from a single sheet, and then trim the remains of the pastry into strips to form a lattice on top of the apple pies.
If you enjoy apple pies, you might also like to try this recipe for blackberry and apple turnovers. It also uses shop-bought puff pastry, but I've combined the apples with blackberries for the filling.
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Ingredients
This recipe will make 12 caramel apple tarts.
- Apples - 2 apples make sufficient filling for 12 mini pies. The apples should be cored and cut into small pieces - about 1 cm square. I like to peel the apples first, but if you prefer to leave the skin on, that's fine. I used English Cox apples but you could use Bramleys or Granny Smiths. You want an apple that will hold its shape and not turn into mush once cooked.
- Puff pastry - One roll of puff pastry will provide you with 12 x 3-inch or 7-cm circles, with a little leftover to form a lattice on top of the pies.
- Butter and dark brown sugar - these are used to soften the apples and form the sticky caramel coating. If you don't have dark brown sugar you can use demerara or even granulated white sugar, but you won't get the rich caramel flavour that comes from the molasses in the dark brown sugar.
- Cinnamon and nutmeg - warming spices to add flavour to the apple filling.
- Cornflour and water - used to thicken the sauce.
- You will also need an egg (which I forgot to include in the photo) to egg-wash the pies before baking them.
**You can find the exact ingredient quantities you will need to make these caramel apple pies on the printable recipe card at the end of this post**
Instructions
Step 1: Peel and core the apples and cut them into 1-cm pieces. You can leave the skins on the apples if you prefer.
Step 2: Place all the ingredients except the cornflour and water into a frying pan or saucepan.
Step 3: Heat gently until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. Stir over moderate heat for 3 to 4 minutes until the apples have softened. Combine the cornflour with water and stir it into the apples. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.
Step 4: Unroll the puff pastry and use a scone cutter to cut 12 x 3-inch or 7-cm circles.
Step 5: Place the pastry circles into a lightly-greased 12-hole jam tart tin.
Step 6: Divide the apple pie filling evenly between the 12 pastry cases.
Step 7: Cut narrow strips from the remaining pastry. Reroll the pastry scraps if you need to make more strips.
Step 8: Brush the edges of the pies with beaten egg and cover with strips of pastry to form a lattice on top. Then brush the tops of the pies with beaten egg.
Step 9: Bake at 200C/400F in a preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes until golden.
Tips for a successful outcome
Here are my top tips to ensure your caramel apple pies always turn out perfectly:
- Keep the apple pieces quite small. This way they will fit more easily into the pastry cases.
- Don't overcook the apples in the butter and sugar mixture. You will only need a few minutes to let the mixture form a caramel.
- When stirring the cornflour into the apples, allow it to cook on moderate heat for a minute or two so the mixture has time to thicken.
- Cut 12 rounds from the pastry and use the scraps to cut strips of pastry to use as a lattice.
- Don't overfill the pastry cases with the apple mixture or you may find that it bubbles out while the pies are cooking in the oven.
Serving suggestions
These caramel apple pies are delicious when served plain as a tea-time treat.
They can be eaten at room temperature or warmed for a few minutes in a hot oven. I wouldn't recommend reheating them in the microwave as the pastry would lose its crispness.
If you want a sweeter coating on the pies you could sprinkle them with granulated sugar before baking. Alternatively, dust them with icing sugar (or powdered sugar) before serving.
Turn them into a delicious dessert by covering them with custard or serving with a scoop of ice cream or whipped cream.
Variations
Stir 2 tablespoons of currants or raisins into the filling for extra fruitiness.
Equipment
For making the filling you will need a frying pan or saucepan.
For baking the apple pies you will need a 12-hole jam tart tin. This is similar to a muffin pan, but with much shallower holes. You can see an example in step 5 of the instructions.
For cutting the pastry rounds you will need a 3-inch or 7-cm diameter round scone or biscuit cutter.
To roll the scraps of pastry so that you can cut them for the lattice you will need a rolling pin. If you don't have one, a clean empty wine bottle will make a good substitute.
Storage
Store the apple pies in an air-tight container either in the kitchen (in winter), or in the refrigerator (in summer). They will stay fresh for up to 3 days.
The cooked pies can also be frozen. Arrange them in layers in a rigid container and separate each layer with baking parchment. Freeze for up to 4 months and allow to defrost and come to room temperature before eating.
Uncooked pies can be frozen in the baking tray and once solid they can be transferred to a suitable container and frozen for up to 4 months. Bake from frozen for the temperature given in the recipe but add an extra 5 minutes to the time.
Save for later
If you would like to make these caramel apple pies why not save the recipe to one of your Pinterest boards so you can find it easily? Just click the image below.
Alternatively, you can save the recipe by clicking on the floating heart icon on the right-hand side of the screen.
Related recipes
Visit my cake, biscuit and dessert recipes page for other delicious bakes. Here are a few using apples that you might enjoy:
📋The recipe
Caramel apple pies
(Click the stars to rate this recipe)
Equipment
- Frying Pan OR
- Saucepan
- 12-hole jam tart tin
- Rolling Pin optional
- Scone cutter 3-inch or 7-cm
Ingredients
- 2 apples
- 1 roll puff pastry at room temperature
- ¼ cup / 50 grams dark brown sugar
- 1½ ounces / 40 grams butter
- 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon cornflour
- 1 tablespoon cold water
- 1 small egg lightly beaten
Instructions
- Peel and core the apples and cut them into 1-cm pieces. You can leave the skins on the apples if you prefer.2 apples
- Place the apples, sugar, butter and spices into a frying pan or saucepan.¼ cup / 50 grams dark brown sugar, 1½ ounces / 40 grams butter, 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Heat gently until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. Stir over moderate heat for 3 to 4 minutes until the apples have softened.
- Combine the cornflour with water and stir it into the apples. Remove from the heat and leave to cool while you prepare the pastry.½ teaspoon cornflour, 1 tablespoon cold water
- Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F.
- Unroll the puff pastry and use a scone cutter to cut 12 x 3-inch or 7-cm circles.1 roll puff pastry
- Place the pastry circles into a lightly-greased 12-hole jam tart tin.
- Divide the apple pie filling evenly between the 12 pastry cases.
- Cut narrow strips (approx ¼-inch wide) from the remaining pastry. Reroll the pastry scraps if you need to make more strips.
- Brush the edges of the pies with beaten egg and cover with strips of pastry to form a lattice on top. Then brush the tops of the pies with beaten egg.1 small egg
- Bake at 200C/400F in a preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes until golden.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
Notes
- Keep the apple pieces quite small. This way they will fit more easily into the pastry cases.
- Don't overcook the apples in the butter and sugar mixture. You will only need a few minutes to let the mixture form a caramel.
- When stirring the cornflour into the apples, allow it to cook on moderate heat for a minute or two so the mixture has time to thicken.
- Cut 12 rounds from the pastry and use the scraps to cut strips of pastry to use as a lattice.
- Don't overfill the pastry cases with the apple mixture or you may find that it bubbles out while the pies are cooking in the oven.
- Store the apple pies in an air-tight container either in the kitchen (in winter), or in the refrigerator (in summer). They will stay fresh for up to 3 days.
- The cooked pies can also be frozen. Arrange them in layers in a rigid container and separate each layer with baking parchment. Freeze for up to 4 months and allow to defrost and come to room temperature before eating.
- Uncooked pies can be frozen in the baking tray and once solid they can be transferred to a suitable container and frozen for up to 4 months. Bake from frozen for the temperature given in the recipe but add an extra 5 minutes to the time.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.
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