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Apple Crumble Baked Apples – A Healthy Alternative

This delicious recipe for apple crumble baked apples gives us the best of both desserts – apple crumble and baked apples.  

It’s the season for all things yummy.  Unfortunately, that might mean it is the season for extra pounds too! 

This yummy dessert has the delicious taste of apple crumble pie with a few slimming tricks that I have up my sleeve..

Cored apples and filled apples in a collage with words Apple crumble baked apples.

I also used this apple crumble taste combination in my hasselback baked apples.  It makes a great dessert, too!

Treat your family to these apple crumble baked apples.

I love all things Apple this time of the year.  Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas will see me serving apples in a wide variety of ways.

I add them to my holiday salads, I use them to make homemade cinnamon-baked apple slices, and I love to bake apples.  Basket of apples

But today, I decided to get some help with my recipe by using an apple Crumble pie.  It has everything I need for my baked apple recipe from the filling to the crumble topping.

I will be deconstructing the pie to make these baked stuffed crumble apples.

Apple Crumble baked apples on a white plate with sauce.
Autumn is the time for me to really bring out the big guns when it comes to my baking.  

I love to bake all the time, but during the later part of the year, I am looking for new and fun ways to treat my family and friends to some of my most special desserts.

Nothing feels quite as good to me as preparing something special for special friends and family.  In my house, fall is also a great way to share the joy of pies.  We all love them here!

My daughter lives in California, but always for a visit this time of the year.  Since apple recipes are some of her favorite desserts, I love to treat her to a new one when she gets here.

I can’t wait for her to try this idea. I know she will just love it! 

But let’s face it folks.  The later part of the year is a really, really busy time with all the holidays to come. So anything that I can use to make baking a little faster and easier is very welcome.  

That’s where this semi-homemade recipe comes in.  

Using a prepared pie makes this recipe so much easier to do, and I KNOW it will taste great before I even start to gather my ingredients.

Don’tcha just LOVE the look of just a few things needed to make a truly special dessert recipe?

Seriously…what could be easier?  I also add some whipped topping over the warm baked apples.  A dessert made in heaven. Yum!!

Apple pie, apples, cinnamon, caramel topping, and Reddi Whip on a gray board.

The recipe has absolutely everything you love about an apple pie ~ gooey cinnamon apple filling, buttery crumble topping, and a warm caramel topping, all baked inside a delicious fall apple.  

This is a different take on a baked apple.  It is beautiful to look at and is something every holiday guest is sure to love.  

Making these baked apples is so simple too.   What I have basically done is to deconstruct the apple pie.

In chef’s talk, deconstructing means that you take the foods that are normally combined in the dish, change their forms in some way, and then plate them together in a different way.

Deconstructing is not just about taking the dish apart. What is important is how you put the food elements back together.  I do believe that I have done this in a really tasty way, if I may say so myself!

Now these pies are big and I only wanted 4 baked apples. What’s a girl to do?  Well….” waste not want not,” as my grandma Mimi used to say. I put the pie on the counter for about 10 minutes.  

Then I inverted it and took the pie out of the pie tin.  I used a very sharp knife to cut the whole pie in half.  I kept one half for my apples and returned the other half to the pie tin.

Then I used a very sharp pair of kitchen shears and made a cut on both sides of the pie tin, folded the unused half up and over, and covered the edges of the crust with aluminum foil so it would not burn.

It made the perfect container for cooking one-half of the pie.  

The crumble will go on when the apples are done cooking, and I’ll finish that part of both recipes at the same time. I put it into the oven while I deconstructed the other half.  

I’m feeling mighty proud of my thrifty self right about now, yessiree!  

Half an apple pie ready to cook on a cutting board.

Now it’s time to deconstruct the pies to make my apple crumble baked apples. This could not be easier.  First I cut the top off four apples and cored them.  (I used a melon baller to make this easy.)  

They got a sprinkle of lemon juice so they would not go brown and then I scooped the pie filling from the other unused half of the pie into a bowl.

Cored apples, apple pie filling, spoon an half a lemon.

The next part is as simple as you can get.  I just spooned the apple pie filling into the hollowed-out apples.  That’s it.  All there is.  Could it get any easier?  I love this recipe.    

Into the oven at 375 º F for about 35 minutes, they go until the apples are starting to get soft.Green apples filled with apple pie filling.

The apple crumble is already made. It’s a delicious blend of brown sugar, butter, and flour, all ready to spoon over both the cooked apple pie half and the baked apples.  

All that is needed now is another 10 minutes in the oven to slightly brown the crumble. Apple crumble baked apples on crumbled paper with caramel topping.While the crumble is browning, it gives me time to get the caramel sauce warmed so it is ready when the apples are done.  (I just put the jar under hot water from the tap.)  

When the warm apples came out of the oven, I just spooned the caramel sauce over the top.Apple crumble baked apples with caramel topping on white plates and bowls.

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What do you do when you have a frozen apple pie, and no apples but want baked apples? Why, combine the two, of course. Find out how to do it on The Gardening Cook.  Share on X

Tasting the apple crumble baked apples

Add a dollop of whipped topping and you have a dessert made in apple heaven. Gooey, rich spiced apple pie filled apples, with a delicious drizzle of caramel and delicate whipped cream.  

I have died and gone to heaven folks.Apple crumble baked apples with whipped topping and caramel topping.

And the best part? There is that half apple crumble pie just calling my name for another meal.   How cool is that?  An apple crumble twofer.  

The best of both worlds. My husband and daughter are going to LOVE mealtime this week!!Apple crumble pie and apple crumble baked apples

What idea do you have to deconstruct a prepared apple pie to make another dessert?  I’d love to hear your comments below with your ideas. 

Serve these apple crumble baked apples to your fall guests and the platter will be empty before you know it!

Apple crumble baked apples with caramel topping on white plates.

Yield: 4

Apple Crumble Baked Apples - A Healthy Alternative

Apple crumble baked apples with whipped topping

This delicious recipe for apple crumble baked apples gives us the best of both words. It's like two desserts in one!

Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 apple crumble pie (rested for 10 minutes and then cut in half)
  • 4 large Granny Smith apples
  • juice of 1/2 lemon
  • bottled caramel topping

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 375º F.
  2. Let the pie rest for about 10 minutes. Remove from the pie plate and cut in half. (return 1/2 of the pie back to the pie plate and cook it as normal for a regular apple pie.)
  3. Continue defrosting the half of the pie that you removed until the filling is soft.
  4. Spoon the contents into a large bowl and set aside.
  5. Slice the top off 4 apples and use a melon baller to core out the center. Drizzle with lemon juice.
  6. Spoon the reserved apple pie filling into the apple centers. Bake in the oven for 35 minutes until the apple are starting to get soft.
  7. Spoon 1/2 of the apple crumble mix over the top of the apples and return to the oven for another 5-10 minutes until the crumble has browned. (the rest of the crumble will go on on the apple pie half that you baked while you made the apples.)
  8. While the crumble is browning, heat the caramel sauce in the microwave.
  9. Spoon the caramel sauce over the baked apples and add a dollop of Reddi wip© whipped cream topping. Enjoy!

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 307Total Fat: 5gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 260mgCarbohydrates: 64gFiber: 7gSugar: 45gProtein: 2g

Nutritional information is approximate due to natural variation in ingredients and the cook-at-home nature of our meals.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are "affiliate links." This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive a small commission from the sale, but the price is the same for you. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

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