Puff Pastry Apple Turnovers are a staple of fall desserts. Light, airy, and addictive puff pastry filled with thick, caramelized, cinnamon apple filling are simply a must-make, must-eat, and must-serve!
I had my first apple turnover a few years ago at the apple orchard my family used to go to in the fall. It was incredible, and I searched for too long to find out what it was even called because I had never had one before.... my Google searches were literally "Apple Triangle Dessert". Luckily, I stumbled across some fun recipes, gained some inspiration, and began developing my own recipe!!! Now, this recipe is a STAPLE of fall, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
Store-Bought Puff Pastry Dough
Raise your hand if you aren't a trained pastry chef, and raise your hand if you don't have hours to slave over dough. Okay, perfect.... we are in the same boat. I will put in the extra work and time with yeast, but I just do not have enough hours in the day to work with homemade pastry.
Therefore, to make things simple, we are using store-bought puff pastry dough. Here is the brand I use. This will be in the freezer section, usually near the ice cream, cool whip, and pie crusts. THIS dough, my friends, is fool-proof. Just follow the thawing instructions on the box and move on!
Perfect Apple Turnover Filling
This filling. I could eat it by the spoonful. It is SO yummy. It's got that cinnamon flavor that is highlighted in so many fall desserts, and it is dripping in a caramel-like sauce.
The best part about this filling is that is SO easy... even if you don't follow the recipe exactly. YOU know what soft apple, so even if the size you cut the apples isn't exactly as I write in the recipe, it's not detrimental!
Tips and Tricks
Following a few of these easy tips that will ensure your turnovers come out like they would from a bakery. These can get MESSY if you're not careful!
- Apple Size/ Apple Bake Time:In the recipe, I write that you'll need apple pieces that are about ¼ inch thick. This is variable to an extent. I would recommend using smaller apple chunks so that you are able to better disperse the filling in the pastries.
- Crimping: The filling can spill out of these turnovers if you don't crimp the edges correctly. Now, sometimes, that's ok. Even if a little spills out, that's fine!!! A little will probably spill out if you've filled them as full as I like to. However, the filling will burn rather than staying ooey and gooey around the outside of the turnover. Burned filling is no fun and just means you have less flavor in the actual turnover. SO, when you crimp these, I recommend pulling excess dough from the top of the folded pastry OVER and slightly under the bottom layer of the dough. Then, press the edge of the pastry together using your fingers to close it. Finally, use your fork to crimp the edges, further ensuring that the edges stay closed. Crimp both sides of the pastry that were previously opened before using our handy closing technique!
- Fridge Time: Do not skip the fridge time. Please. Even if you're a crimping master, it's better to be safe than sorry. You do NOT want all of your gorgeous filling to spill out of your pastries, and popping them in the fridge for 20-30 minutes is an added measure of protection.
Other Fall Recipes
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Puff Pastry Apple Turnovers
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Chill Time: 30 minutes:
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes
- Yield: 8 turnovers 1x
- Category: Fall, Apples, Apple Pie, Apple Turnovers, Fruit
- Cuisine: American
Description
Puff Pastry Apple Turnovers are a staple of fall desserts. Light, airy, and addictive puff pastry filled with thick, caramelized, cinnamon apple filling are simply a must-make, must-eat, and must-serve! With a fool-proof filling and store-bough puff pastry, these are too easy and too delicious to pass up!
Ingredients
For the Pastry
- 1 package of puff pastry dough (2 sheets)
For the Filling
- 4 medium Granny Smith Apples, peeled
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 egg + 1 teaspoon water
For the Glaze
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 2 Tablespoons milk
Instructions
For the Filling
- Peel and chop your apples into ¼ inch thick pieces, though it's completely fine to have bigger and thicker pieces as long as all of your apple pieces are roughly the same size.
- In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, add butter and chopped apples. Heat and stir with a wooden spoon until apples are soft but still sturdy, about 7 minutes. At this point, you will still need a knife to break apart the apple pieces, but you should be able to push the apple pieces with a wooden spoon. You don’t want them to be too soft at this stage, as they will continue to be on the stove for some time and will bake in the oven. Heating works differently for every stove and your apple pieces will likely vary, so cook based on texture rather than time.
- Add brown sugar and cinnamon. Allow mixture to come to a simmer before lowering heat slightly. Stir to ensure your mixture does not burn. Heat on low until apples are soft. They should be very easy to push down with a wooden spoon. Mixture should have a thin consistency and be caramel-color. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
For the Pastry
- On a clean, lightly floured surface, roll 1 thawed pastry sheet into a 10×10 square. Cut square into 4 equal panels.
- Add 2-3 Tablespoons of filling to each pastry in a diamond shape with the majority of the filling in the upper left corner of the dough. Ensure that you have about ½ inch of space at the edges. You want to ensure that your filling does not reach the edges, as it will spill out when baking if the filling is too close to the edge.
- Grab the bottom right corner of the dough and fold it over so that the bottom right and upper left corners meet. Pull the upper layer of the dough over the bottom layer of the dough to ensure there is no opening in the pastry.
- Crimp the 2 edges of the triangle using a fork.
- Repeat this process with the second sheet of pastry dough.
- Place 4 turnovers on each pan before placing the pans in the fridge for 20-30 minutes.
Baking the Pastry
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Beat one egg with one teaspoon of water to create the egg wash. Before placing the pastries in the oven, thoroughly brush the tops of the pastries with the wash. I use these to brush the egg wash, but if you have a clean paint brush or are very careful with a spoon, that could work too! Use a fork to create about 5 air pockets in each pastry. Ensure that the fork fully pushes through the top layer of the pastry. There is no need for the fork to go through both layer.
- Bake pastries for about 15-18 minutes. Pastries will be golden brown, crispy, and flaky when finished. To ensure your pastries are cooked, use a spatula to check the bottom of one of the turnovers. Bottom should be a light golden brown in color.
For the Glaze
- Whisk confectioners’ sugar with milk in a small bowl to create the glaze. You can use a spoon to drizzle the glaze or place it in a Ziploc bag or piping bag for more control.
- Allow turnovers to cool slightly before drizzling with glaze. Store at room temperature for up to 4 days.
Keywords: Apple Turnovers, Puff Pastry, Apple Pie Filling, Caramel, Cinnamon
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