Pippins

A quick and easy apple treat for those chilly fall days!

Prep: 10 min

Cook time: 15 min

Cook Temp: 350F

Total: 25 min

Serves: 8 people (1 apple/1 can of dough)

Utensils:

Whisk or fork

Small ingredient bowl

Knife

Cutting board

Cookie sheet or oven safe pan/sheet

Small microwave safe bowl

Pastry brush

Peeler (optional)

Ingredients:

1 apple

1 can of premade crescent roll dough

4 tbsp melted butter

3 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp brown sugar

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg (optional)

Directions:

-Preheat oven to 350 F.

-In a small bowl, mix together sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and optional nutmeg with a fork or small whisk. Set aside.

-Wash the apple and peel if preferred. Apple wedges with skin-on are just as good for this recipe. Cut the apple into 8 pieces. I usually cut the apple in half, then half again, then half one more time. Next I trim the core out of each wedge. Using an apple slicer is another quick option if you have one.

-Open the pre-made dough. Usually, these come with 8 triangles of dough already “pre-cut” for easy sizing. Roll out each piece onto the cooking sheet or pan.

-In a microwave safe bowl, add the butter (4 tbsp is my go-to but feel free to adjust for preference) and heat for 15 second intervals until completely melted. Once melted, brush each of the dough sections in butter using a pastry brush. Make sure to leave at least half the butter for later.

-Next, sprinkle the sugar mixture over the dough sections until all parts of the dough are covered. Use the pastry brush to spread the mixture evenly if you need to. Make sure to leave a small amount of sugar mixture for later.

-Place an apple wedge at the point of the dough triangle. Slowly roll the wedge of apple with the dough. At this part, I usually pull and stretch the dough so the apple is covered or almost completely covered.

-After all the wedges are rolled, brush the wrapped apples with remaining melted butter. Sprinkle them with the remaining sugar mixture as well. Once again, feel free to use the pastry brush to spread the mixture to your liking.

-The oven should be heated by this time, place on the highest rack if possible and cook for 15-20 minutes. The dough should be a little golden brown when the treats are ready.

-Remove from oven once cooked and let cool for a few minutes. Serve the pippins with vanilla ice cream or caramel sauce or just plain if you choose!

About this recipe:

If you’re wondering about the name of these treats, here’s why I call them Pippins. My friend Jackie and I often make dinners and watch movies together. While we were rewatching the Lord of the Rings trilogy (extended edition of course) we found these treats to perfectly pair with our hobbit themed meals and snacks.

It didn’t take long for us to start calling these delightful treats “Pippins” after the hobbit, Pippin, from LOTR. Ever since then, I’ll make them whenever I watch the trilogy. I wasn’t sure why I associated them with LOTR until I watched the trilogy again recently. In case you aren’t familiar, after Merry and Pippin help the Ents takeover Isengard, the hobbits find Saruman’s hidden pantry due to the apples floating in the waters from the flood. I guess I affiliated that moment of joy combined with the triumph of winning a battle together and connected it to this simple, yet satisfying, dessert.

And no, this is not a “spoiler” because Two Towers has been out for seventeen years now.

SEVENTEEN. YEARS.

As I type this I am in awe with how quickly the years have flown by….

I should also clarify, this is not an original recipe. I found a similar one online years ago and have adjusted it over time for my own preference. If you know of the original source, please let me know because I would be happy to credit them.

Thanks for reading!

Carley