Apple Braid Pastry

This was a tasty way to use up some of the apples that Barry and I picked.

Apple Braid Pastry  Make 3 braids

Dough: 1 recipe sour cream dough 

Filling:

4 medium apples

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Toppings:

Egg wash (1 egg mixed with 1 teaspoon water)

Powdered sugar & butter (or cream cheese-based) glaze for drizzling 

Chopped walnuts

1. Dough: Prepare dough according to recipe instructions and allow to rise.
2. Filling: Peel and core apples; cut into ¼” pieces. (Xover apples with water and about a teaspoon of lemon juice to prevent browning; drain before preceding with recipe.)
3. In a medium bowl, combine apples, sugar, flour and cinnamon; Stir to combine and evenly coat. 
4. Preheat oven to 400° F. 
5. Assembling: Punch dough down and urn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into thirds. Roll each portion into a 14x7" rectangle on a silicon baking mat or a sprayed sheet of parchment.
6. On each long side, cut 3/4" wide strips about 2" into center. Cut away top sections as show in photo.
7. Add 1/3 of the filling to each braid.  
   
   
   
8. Starting at one end, fold down and bottom ends and then fold alternating strips at an angle across filling. Pinch ends to seal. (If you end up with excess dough that is not needed in the braid, remove it and proceed with braiding.) Transfer each coffee cake to a baking sheet.
   
   
   
9. Baking & Finishing: Brush with egg wash and add to preheated oven; bake for about 35 minutes until dough is golden brown and apples are tender. (Tent braid with foil if it is brown and the apples still need a little more baking time.)
10. Cool on a rack.
11. When cool drizzle with glaze and sprinkle with chopped walnuts if desired.
    
    
    

Recipe without photos . . .Apple Braid Pastry  Make 3 braids

Dough: 1 recipe sour cream dough 

Filling:

4 medium apples

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Toppings:

Egg wash (1 egg mixed with 1 teaspoon water)

Powdered sugar & butter (or cream cheese-based) glaze for drizzling 

Chopped walnuts

1. Dough: Prepare dough according to recipe instructions and allow to rise.
2. Filling: Peel and core apples; cut into ¼” pieces. (Xover apples with water and about a teaspoon of lemon juice to prevent browning; drain before preceding with recipe.)
3. In a medium bowl, combine apples, sugar, flour and cinnamon; Stir to combine and evenly coat. 
4. Preheat oven to 400° F. 
5. Assembling: Punch dough down and urn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into thirds. Roll each portion into a 14x7" rectangle on a silicon baking mat or a sprayed sheet of parchment.
6. On each long side, cut 3/4" wide strips about 2" into center. Cut away top sections as show in photo.
7. Add 1/3 of the filling to each braid.  
8. Starting at one end, fold down and bottom ends and then fold alternating strips at an angle across filling. Pinch ends to seal. (If you end up with excess dough that is not needed in the braid, remove it and proceed with braiding.) Transfer each coffee cake to a baking sheet.
9. Baking & Finishing: Brush with egg wash and add to preheated oven; bake for about 35 minutes until dough is golden brown and apples are tender. (Tent braid with foil if it is brown and the apples still need a little more baking time.)
10. Cool on a rack.
11. When cool drizzle with glaze and sprinkle with chopped walnuts if desired.

Old-fashioned Apple Dumplings

My mom, Phyllis Newell,  was a wonderful cook and baker. She made the BEST apple dumplings using the recipe from her edition of the Betty Crocker Cookbook. I used that same recipe from my 1960s era cookbook to create this delicious dessert and a lot of nostalgic memories! 

Of course Mom always served apple dumplings with ice cream. I served ours with butter pecan ice cream. 

Apple Dumplings   Yield 6 or 4

(1st ingredient amount is for 6 dumplings; 2nd is for 4)

Dumplings

Pastry for 9" two-crust pie for 6 / pastry for 8" two-curst pie for 4

Tart juicy apples -  6 /4

Sauce

Granulated sugar - 1 cup / 2/3 cup

Water - 2 cups / 1 1/2 cups

Butter - 3 tablespoons / 2 tablespoons

Ground cinnamon - 1/4 teaspoon / 1/4 teaspoon

Apple Filling

Granulated sugar - 1/2 cup / 1/3 cup

Ground cinnamon - 1 1/2 teaspoons / 1 teaspoon

Butter - 1 tablespoon / 2 teaspoons.

1. Heat oven to 425°.
2. Roll out pastry a little less than 1/2" thick and cut into 7"squares.
3. Pare and care an apple for each dumpling.
4. Boil the 4 sauce ingredients together for 3 minutes.
5. Place apple on each square of pastry. 
6. Fill the cavities of apples with mixture of sugar and cinnamon as listed under apple filling ingredients. Dot each with butter.
7. Bring opposites point of pastry up over the apple. Overlap, moisten and seal.
8. Lift carefully, place a little apart in baking dish. Pour hot syrup around dumplings. 
9. Bake immediate 40 to 45 minutes or until crust is nicely browned and apples are cook through (test with fork).
10. Server warm with the syrup and with ice cream, cream or whipped cream.