Apple and cinnamon dessert recipes
These apple and cinnamon desserts gather the autumn baking of a dozen countries, from pies, tarts and a crumble to pears poached in spiced red wine. There are apple cakes from Russia, Germany and Finland and a Danish one that is never baked. Cinnamon runs through most of the desserts here, joined by cardamom in the Finnish and Swedish bakes.
Apple pie, apple crumble and apfelstrudel are the classics, and appeltaart is the deep Dutch version, filled to the brim with cinnamon apples and raisins. Cinnamon rolls, carrot cake and arroz con leche bring the spice without the apples. Every recipe gives exact amounts, scales to the number of people eating and sends what you still need to a shared shopping list.
16 recipes
Apple Pie馃嚭馃嚫 American recipes 路 Dessert 路 4 h 40 min
Apple Crumble馃嚞馃嚙 British recipes 路 Dessert 路 1 h 10 min
Apfelstrudel馃嚛馃嚜 German recipes 路 Dessert 路 2 h 30 min
Cinnamon Rolls馃嚭馃嚫 American recipes 路 Breakfast 路 3 h
Sharlotka馃實 Eastern European recipes 路 Dessert 路 1 h 55 min
Versunkener Apfelkuchen馃嚛馃嚜 German recipes 路 Dessert 路 2 h 40 min
Tarte Tatin馃嚝馃嚪 French recipes 路 Dessert 路 1 h 30 min
Appeltaart馃嚦馃嚤 Dutch recipes 路 Dessert 路 4 h 25 min
Baked Apples馃嚞馃嚙 British recipes 路 Dessert 路 1 h 5 min
Omenapiirakka馃實 Nordic recipes 路 Dessert 路 1 h 10 min
脝blekage馃實 Nordic recipes 路 Dessert 路 2 h 15 min
Carrot Cake馃嚭馃嚫 American recipes 路 Dessert 路 2 h 40 min
Kanelbullar (Cinnamon Buns)馃實 Nordic recipes 路 Snack 路 3 h
Pear Cake馃嚠馃嚬 Italian recipes 路 Dessert 路 2 h 35 min
Poached Pears in Red Wine馃嚝馃嚪 French recipes 路 Dessert 路 1 h 15 min
Arroz con Leche馃嚥馃嚱 Mexican recipes 路 Dessert 路 45 min
Choosing apples and pears
The kind of apple decides the texture. Bramleys collapse into a soft, sharp pur茅e in apple crumble and puff up light and fluffy in baked apples, where the skin is scored round the middle so it splits neatly instead of bursting. Firm apples are for desserts that must hold their shape, such as the halves packed tightly into tarte tatin, which lose a third of their volume as they cook.
Pears follow the same rule. Pear cake wants them ripe but still firm, because soft, juicy pears release water and leave the crumb soggy, and poached pears in red wine are made with firm, slightly underripe ones, since ripe pears go soft outside before the centre is tender.
Breadcrumbs, caramel and whisked eggs
Breadcrumbs do quiet work in several of these. Apfelstrudel spreads toasted buttered crumbs over its dough so they soak up the apple juice and the pastry stays crisp, appeltaart scatters them over its base against a wet bottom, and sharlotka coats its buttered tin with them. 脝blekage is built on crumbs toasted in butter and sugar, layered cold with vanilla apple compote and whipped cream and never baked.
Sharlotka has no baking powder: eggs and sugar are whisked for 8 to 10 minutes, and that air alone lifts the sponge. In versunkener apfelkuchen the batter rises around scored apple quarters so they look sunk into the cake. Tarte tatin is baked upside down and must be turned out after five minutes, before the caramel sets and fixes it to the pan.
Cinnamon, spice and making ahead
Apple pie, apple crumble and apfelstrudel toss ground cinnamon through the apples, arroz con leche simmers its rice with a cinnamon stick, and poached pears in red wine pair a cinnamon stick with star anise, cloves, orange peel and vanilla. Omenapiirakka puts cardamom in the batter and cinnamon sugar on top, and carrot cake whisks ground cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg through its flour. Tarte tatin, versunkener apfelkuchen, 忙blekage and pear cake are the exceptions, with no cinnamon at all.
Poached pears in red wine keep for four days in their syrup in the fridge and colour more deeply each day. Appeltaart must cool completely in its tin before it is released, and 忙blekage is eaten straight away while the crumbs crunch, or chilled for a few hours until they soften into a cake-like layer, which many Danes prefer.
Frequently asked questions
- Which apples are good for baking?
- It depends on the dessert. Apple pie mixes tart and sweet apples such as Granny Smith and Braeburn. Bramleys collapse into a soft, sharp pur茅e, which suits apple crumble but not tarte tatin, where firm apples have to hold their shape. For cakes, firm, tart apples balance a sweet batter: Boskoop, Elstar or Braeburn in versunkener apfelkuchen and Granny Smith in sharlotka.
- How is Dutch appeltaart different from American apple pie?
- Appeltaart is deep and packed, not a thin tart. A sweet, biscuit-like dough is pressed into a 24 cm springform, filled to the brim with cinnamon apples and raisins, covered with a lattice and baked for 70 to 80 minutes. Apple pie has a flaky all-butter double crust in a 23 cm pie dish, with a lattice over apples tossed in cinnamon, nutmeg and brown sugar.
- Is apple crumble the same as apple crisp?
- Very nearly: the apple crumble here is also known as apple crisp. Tart apples are softened with sugar, cinnamon and lemon juice under a rough topping of flour, butter, demerara sugar and oats, scattered loosely rather than pressed down so it bakes crisp and craggy. It goes into the oven for 35 to 40 minutes and is served with hot custard.
- Is apple strudel German or Austrian?
- Austrian by origin, and loved all over Germany. Apfelstrudel starts with a simple dough of strong flour, oil, water and a little vinegar, rested for an hour, then stretched by hand over a floured cloth until it is paper-thin and about a metre across. It is rolled around apples, raisins, cinnamon and buttered breadcrumbs; six buttered sheets of filo are the shortcut.
- What is the difference between cinnamon rolls and kanelbullar?
- Cinnamon rolls are the American kind: soft yeast rolls swirled with butter, brown sugar and cinnamon, baked close together so the sides stay soft, and spread with cream cheese icing. Kanelbullar (cinnamon buns) are Swedish, with cardamom in the dough and the filling. They are twisted and knotted, baked hot and fast for 10 to 12 minutes, brushed with syrup and topped with pearl sugar instead of icing.