How to Make the Best Old-Fashioned Fried Apples You’ve Ever Had!

Easy-to-make, these gluten-free dairy-free Fried Apples
are a great year-round treat!

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I don’t know what’s going on with my gluten-free pie crust recipe lately. I seem to have totally lost my knack when it comes to whipping up a tender, flaky crust.

It worked beautifully when I first created the recipe. I loved how easy it was to make because I didn't have to roll it. I could just pat it into the pie pan and pop it into the oven.

But now?

The talent seems to have gone south on me, so I haven’t made a pie in quite some time.

Old-fashioned fried apples.

Now, that's a completely different matter. They are a year-round staple at our house.

One of the best benefits to making fried applies is that you don’t have to have any talent for making an edible gluten-free pie crust.

So, let's be honest for just a moment.

The pie filling is the best part of the pie, right?

If so, then why bother with the crust?

Fried apples are simple and easy to make. In fact, you don’t even need to thicken them when you don’t bake the apples into a pie.

You just peel whatever type of apple you like, slice them rather thickly, and toss them into a non-stick skillet with a little bit of butter or dairy-free margarine.

In addition, not only do you save money from not having to buy the gluten free flours necessary to make a pie crust (or pay the high price for a pre-made crust), but you can also use whatever apples are on sale that week.

They can even be ugly and misshaped with a few dings and blemishes because no one is going to see them but you.

Old-Fashioned Fried Apples Makes Your House Smell Wonderful

Fried apples are simply apple-pie filling without all the hassle and added expense of a crust, and thickener.

They make your house smell like cinnamon or pumpkin-pie spices when you cook them.

You can even serve them topped with some real heavy whipped cream.

Fried apples are good, old-fashioned comfort food, especially if you toss in the raisins or some dried cranberries and maybe add a few pecans for an extra-special holiday crunchy treat.

These apples remind me of how the house used to smell so wonderful when I made freshly baked bread before going gluten free – only better.

Much better.

While they are cooking, they make your house smell like the Christmas holidays, like those spicy pine cones that Walmart sells in a net bag around Thanksgiving.

The smell of these fried apples
will make whatever type of day you're
having so much better!

No matter what type of day you’re having, when you smell the warm spices and know how tasty those juicy raisins and apples will be, it just makes you feel better.

It makes you feel like you’re more on top of things.

Like, you actually know what you’re doing when it comes to gluten-free cooking.

How to Make Old-Fashioned Fried Apples

You don’t need a recipe.

That’s the best part.

You just need about 8 to 12 apples, depending on how big they are, and how large your frying pan is.

I typically use about 8 or 9 Fuji apples, but any apples that are on sale will work nicely. Since you're going to cook them, even mushy or mealy apples will work nicely for this.

Peel the apples, and then cut them into 4 pieces. This makes cutting out the core quicker and easier.

With a paring knife, I simply take a quick swipe over the core and seeds, and toss them into the trash can. I then slice each apple piece into about 4 wedges, as you can see in the following photo.

Toss the sliced apples into a large non-stick frying pan

While slicing the apples, throw a scoop of butter or dairy-free margarine into a large, non-stick frying pan, and begin heating it up. If your pan is non-stick, you only need a couple of tablespoons.

If you're partial to real lard or olive oil, you could use one of those instead.

To speed things up:

Throw the apples in on top of the butter as you slice them because the butter or margarine is going to melt anyway. Once you have all of the apples in the pan, adjust your heat so it is somewhat low.

You don’t want the apples to brown, just steam in their own juices.

Sprinkle the apples heavily with cinnamon and a little nutmeg or some apple-pie spices. For an even zestier fried apple dish, you can even use some pumpkin-pie spices. That's what I always use. I just love the taste of pumpkin spice.

Add about a cup of raisins or dried cranberries. I don’t usually measure the raisins. I just toss a handful of them on top of the spiced apples, and then stir it all together.

Put a cover on the pan, and let the apples cook.

You’ll want to stir them about every 5 minutes or so, until they are cooked through as done as you like them.

Stirring helps the apples cook evenly, and prevents them from browning. The apples will release quite a bit of steam, and maybe some juices, so you don’t need to add any liquid.

Just don’t forget to stir them.

Since I’m going to cook them a little bit longer once I sweeten them, I leave the apples a little bit underdone. I cook them just until they’re barely tender, but not completely soft. They’re more like how they’d be if you baked a green apple pie.

Toss in some brown sugar, about 1/2 cup.
If using sour apples, you'll need to add more.

At this point, I toss in some dark brown sugar, about 1/2 cup or so. I don’t usually measure the sugar either, but I did this last time, so I could tell you how much I use. That 1/2-cup is for 8 to 9 Fuji apples. Fuji apples are sweet and crisp, so if you use a sour apple, you’ll need more sweetener.

Normally, I just toss in a handful of pure cane brown sugar, or so. Alternatively, you could use a safe, local honey. Even some 100-percent maple syrup would flavor these fried apples nicely.

Pure cane white sugar would also work, if that’s what you have, but the molasses in the brown sugar adds a nice, spicy touch.

Stir the apples well, and continue cooking and flipping the mixture until the sugar melts. Once the sugar has melted, I cook them for another couple of minutes, until the spicy sauce thickens slightly.

They can be served warm for dinner, as a great gluten-free side dish, or you can chill them in the refrigerator for a nice summer snack. My husband likes to take them chilled in his lunch.

Old-Fashioned Fried Apples
make a great gluten-free dairy-free side dish

It’s the combination of brown sugar, cinnamon, pumpkin-spice and raisins that make these Old-Fashioned Fried Apples the best apples you’ve ever had.

In fact, every time I make them, hubby groans with pleasure when he sees and smells them. He knows how good they’re going to taste in his lunch the following day!