CrockPot Apple Dumpling Recipe


Day 137.

This is why I need a Wii.

or maybe a treadmill.

Holy toledo, these puppies are yummy. I found the recipe eons ago on the Pioneer Woman Cooks website, and bookmarked them for some reason in my gluten-free folder. 

I have no idea why, except for maybe at the time I wanted to try and attempt them gluten-free.

I then promptly forgot all about trying to tweak the recipe.

It's been a hundred million degrees here the last few days, and sweating buckets makes me feel like a-little-something sweet. So I dug through the cubbards and fridge and found a way to make them. 

Gluten free. In the crockpot.


And they rock.

PS: you don't have to make them gluten free. you get to used canned crescent rolls. (no gloating allowed!!)


The Ingredients.

2 cans refrigerated crescent rolls.

* Unless you are gluten free. If you are gluten free, use this recipe.

I followed it to the letter except that I doubled it, used Pamela's, and used sour cream instead of cottage cheese. It is a delicious, moist, yummy dough that is perfect for so many things; I am positively giddy to have found it! (psst. chill your dough for at least 2 hours!) *

2 granny smith apples
1 stick of butter
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup Mountain Dew


The Directions.

Spray your crock insert with cooking spray.

If you are using the crescent rolls, roll out the little triangles and fill each one with an apple slice or two and roll it up.

















If you are using the GF dough, do the same thing, but realize that it will be a bit lumpy and not quite as thin. It's okay. This dough recipe is beyond fantastic. Seriously.

Pile the crockpot high with all of your little dumpling guys.


Melt the stick of butter in the microwave, and stir in the cup of sugar, and the cinnamon and vanilla. Pour over the dumplings, making sure to get down in the nooks and crannies.

Then add 1 cup of Mountain Dew, the same way---pour it over the top. It will make a delightful bubbly sound!

Prop lid open with a wooden spoon or chopstick and cook on high for 4-5 hours, or until the dough is brown and cooked through.


The Verdict.


Delicious, moist, and gooey. They were very, very sweet. The kids (those nutty kids) couldn't eat their whole serving because of how sweet they were.


Did you know you could do this in the crockpot?! Seriously. Mind blown. I LOVE how easy and delicious this is using canned crescent rolls. But if you are gluten free there is a recipe for a GF dough to use. Score!

Adam and I didn't seem to have that problem.

I liked them even better the next morning cold.

Have I mentioned how beyond stoked I am to have this basic gluten-free dough recipe that I can fool around with? 

I'm thinking overnight pull-apart rolls, cinnamon buns, crescent rolls for Thanksgiving...

eek! I'm so excited!

OH! and I haven't had Mountain Dew in years. I couldn't waste the bottle, so I finished it. LOL, I was instant-messaging with my friend Laura and was so hopped up on caffeine and sugar I could hardly type.

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Posted by: Stephanie O'Dea | A Year of Slow Cooking at May 16, 2008

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What they say about this article

  1. Anonymous5/16/2008

    Steph's right about the dough...it was perfect. The whole dish turned out great and really hit the spot with some vanilla ice cream on top. Thanks Steph!!

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  2. why the mountain dew? could you substitute something else and have the same results?

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  3. yum-meeee. those look good. i'll probably make them for my dad's birthday!

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  4. Those look amazing! Yum.

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  5. Anonymous5/16/2008

    This is the coolest blog - I love my crock pot but am clearly under utilizing it. Looking forward to testing some of these recipes.

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  6. thanks to YOU, adam, for running out for the icecream! ;-)
    xox

    kelly, the Mt Dew is really just for fun. Any lemon-limey soda would work, as would lemonade or apple juice. it was fun to drink quickly, though!

    -steph

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  7. I just cannot bring myself to try this...it makes my teeth hurt just to think about it! I'm glad to know it works though. Maybe I'll try to modify it.

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  8. I think I would use Diet Sprite and Splenda instead of sugar, but it looks amazing!

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  9. You are superwoman! This looks better than apple pie, and without the rolling of crusts! Okay, for you: Have you ever tried Crockpot Goetta? I use the one by that name at Recipezaar (but with more water). I assume oats are gluten free?

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  10. Can you make that dough using regular flour? I'm not big on the refridgerated crescent rolls. This recipe looks fab. I think I would be pretty shaky and loopy if I tried to drinnk a Mt. Dew straight up. =)

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  11. mom24, I know, it's SOO much sugar!
    sarak, ooh, if you test that out, let me know.
    laurel, I don't know that food/recipe/word. I'm going to look it up. There is a whole debate about whether or not oats are safe for a gluten free diet. when you have an extra 6 hrs, you should google it. ;-)

    lizzie, lol, I would assume it would work with all-purpose flour. Actually, yes, it should work. the xanthum gum is a gluten simulator--which is so the dough binds together. There is no yeast involved, so I bet it would work just right.
    lemme know if it works, or if you try just the crescent roll recipe.

    xox
    steph

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  12. Anonymous5/16/2008

    Hi Steph- I recently found your blog and love it. This looks delicious- thanks! Do you happen to live in the Portland, OR area? Some things you've written lead me to think so. Anyway, there is a gluten-free fair tomorrow in NE portland- it's on oregonlive.com under entertainment, then events, if you are interested. Thanks for all the awesome recipes. You're my hero for doing this every day for a year! WOW! Bev

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  13. Hi Bev,
    no, I don't live in Oregon, I live in CA. but that event sounds awesome--and I hope that there are lots of yummy samples!
    xox
    steph

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  14. Anonymous5/17/2008

    Did the original pioneer recipe call for mountain dew? Because if it did...I don't think they meant a citrusy soda pop. ;) Just wanted to put that out there. :P

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  15. bwhahhaahaha! I am envisioning children running around with buckets collecting dew...
    lol!

    steph

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  16. I happened upon your blog through a link on another one, and I had to link it to mine becuase you have so many great recipes!

    We tried the dumplings that they were a huge hit! I think I may try less sugar next time, though. I wonder if 1/2 a cup would work as well, or if that would mess up all the nice sauce?

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  17. I just made these and they were a BIG hit!. My only thought would be to not cook over 4 hours so maybe there'd be more juice left to drizzle over the ice cream. I will be making these again.

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  18. I made this for a BBQ party this weekend....fabulous and not a crumb leftover!

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  19. I have the dough chilling right now and can't wait to try this. But I was wondering if you peeled the apples. It doesn't look like it in the picture. Thanks.

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  20. nikki, nope, I didn't peel.
    let me know how it comes out!
    -steph

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  21. Okay, I made this today and am here to give you a report. The dough was wonderful and I'm so glad I found it. I held back some dough and made some crescent rolls. My picky (silly) son loved them. I have Better Batter Flour and I also used the cottage cheese. The dough was very sticky even after chilling for more than 24 hours but it tasted great. Now the dumplings didn't turn out as well, but I think it's my crockpot. You had advised me to call Rival about adjusting it because I really think it cooks too high, but I have yet to do that. I checked it after 3 hours and the dough wasn't done yet-it looked fine. I went to the store and when I got back, it was burned (this was 4 hours). The middle was good but the apples were almost pure mush. So I need to get it adjusted. Thanks for the recipe.

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  22. I've been cooking for 40 years, and this is one of the easiest and best-tasting recipes for apple dumplings I've ever come across.

    My husband and I are both diabetic, so we used 1/2 cup of sugar and 1/2 cup of Splenda. It was perfect. Next time (and there WILL be a next time!), we're going to try all Splenda to offset the sugar in the Mountain Dew.

    Thanks for a great recipe!

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  23. I'm so glad that you enjoyed them, Brenda!

    xoox
    -steph

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  24. Anonymous7/08/2008

    I agree, this is much easier than apple pie. I used sugar free lemonade and it turned out just fine. You were right about it being good the next morning as well. It has fruit, that counts as breakfast right?

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  25. This recipe is amazing. I Loved it! If you like apple pie this will be a favorite instantly. It is rich but mouth watering I swear I couldn't believe how good it was. exspecially since it truly wasn't any harder than putting a frozen pie in the oven and was SOOO much BETTER!!! Thank you for posting it. and all these recipes I love this site.

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  26. ZOMG these are delicious! I made them today and my fiance and roommate are in love with me now....not that they already weren't. ;)

    My only deviations from your recipe:

    **Subbed 1 Cup of Sugar with 1 Cup Splenda
    **Subbed 1 Cup Mountain Dew with 1 Can of Diet Mountain Dew

    PS. I'm uber glad I've found your blog, I heart my three crock pots and can't wait to utilize more of your recipes! Thank you for your blog!

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  27. Naomi, I'm so glad that you liked them, and thanks for reporting back that the splenda and diet Dew works well.
    xox
    steph

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  28. I didn't have a crock pot back when I made these, I wsh I had, but DP didn't think that much of them, and it's sheer foolishness for me to cook a batch knowing I'll have to eat the lot myself!

    I got the recipe from PW too, but since we don't have crescent rolls here in Australia, I just used puff pastry, and that worked fine. I put strawberry slices on top of my apples - made it even nicer.

    (And I regularly drink Mt Dew straight. Or with vodka)

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  29. Anonymous10/17/2008

    Got most of the ingredients for this, but am going back to store so I can double it. Can't wait to try it! We are having company tonight, so I am fixing baked taters, black bean soup, and apple dumplins! Can't wait!
    Hope you continue "crock pot" blogging into 2009!

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  30. Anonymous1/11/2009

    I made these last night, and they are really really good. I used red apples (they were going unloved in the fridge) and only 1/2 cup of sugar. I think it turned out great with less sugar! It was still pretty darn sweet, so I might even go less next time.

    Also, you were right, I think they are even better cold for breakfast. :)

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  31. Anonymous3/03/2009

    Dear Steph,
    This was amazing, my entire family (8 of us)plus my parents loved them. We had them with the vanilla ice-cream. The only problem I had was my 7qt. crock pot (RIVAL) burning the edges after 3 hours. I will re-try these in my smaller crock pot and hope for better results.
    Thanks so much for sharing.

    www.codyspencerfreymuth.com

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  32. Coppertop4/05/2010

    Can you use DIET Mt. Dew? Mt. Dew was my CRACK for years....the first thing I drank in the morning and the last at night. I've FINALLY changed to Diet pops, I can't go back....I'll get addicted again.....so if I make this....I'll use Diet.

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  33. Anonymous5/19/2010

    I made 1.5 batches of this in a 6.5 QT crockpot. Optimal cooking time on high would be 4:15min - 4:30min. They were slightly burned by 4:45.

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  34. Anonymous6/20/2010

    I made this today for Father's Day, wanted something not chocolaty for dessert for my husband. It was very good, only thing I would probably change is the apples were still really tart, (used Granny Smith). I'm thinking a sweeter apple would make it better? It was good though, and the kids all ate it up!! We had it with vanilla ice cream. Thanks for this recipe!!

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  35. Anonymous8/29/2010

    I'm glad you cut back on the sugar in this recipe from Pioneer Woman's which calls for 1&1/2cups sugar. It was too sweet! The kids liked it but complained it was overly sweet. I will try it in the crock pot next time & use 1/4 or 1/2 cup sugar. I came to your blog after somebody posted on Pioneer Woman's blog that the Apple Dumpling recipe could be made in a crock pot & they noted your blog site. Glad I came over.
    Brenda

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  36. I'm trying this now, the gf dough was really sticky, but I pressed it with saran wrap so it didn't stick as bad to my hands. I can't wait to try it!!

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  37. I made this for Christmas Eve dessert, served w/ vanilla ice cream. I used only 1/2 c sugar, which was plenty. And instead of Mt. Dew I used lemonade. They are absolutely delicious!!!! The full recipe was a lot for my family of 4, we had plenty left over for Christmas breakfast.

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  38. I am trying a double batch of these right now in my 7qt. My only question is that my crockpot has a hole in the lid with a rubber stopper so you can let steam out. Instead of using the "wooden spoon" method, I took out the rubber stopper...hope it works out! :)

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  39. Anonymous1/31/2011

    The worst part about these things is that 3h later, when I went to the kitchen to sneak more, and they were GONE, my husband told me he'd only had one. ONE. Which means I ate the other FIVE. FIVE. In 3 hours!!! Enjoyed every minute!

    I only used 1 cup of sugar (and used 2/3c white and 1/c brown) and for the liquid I used apple juice. There was a load of sauce left over so I put that aside and scooped it over each one to serve.

    Off to buy more crescent rolls tomorrow!!!

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  40. Brenda Ruse2/23/2011

    OK - so I'm about 2 years behind in trying this - - - had great "reviews" from a church ladies group. Very yummy!!! I modified the white sugar content by:

    using sweeter apples - a yellow delicious and a jona gold
    used 1/2 C. white sugar + 2 Tbsp of brown sugar

    I didn't have tons of sauce left over in the bottom - would that have been because of the apples? hmmmm, not sure on that one . . .

    We at the group meeting thought you could throw in some nuts if you wanted to - maybe walnuts, etc.

    Thanks for the recipe!

    Brenda

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  41. I'm also WAY behind (2 years) but I tried this recipe yesterday. After 6 1/2 hrs on high with the lid propped open with a wooden spoon the edges were starting to burn and the dough wasn't even close to cooked all the way through. :( On the upside, my house smelled great and I saved myself a lot of calories because we couldn't eat it. LOL! I used the crescent roll dough and I used an all natural lemon lime soda because I am allergic to caffeine so Mt Dew was not an option. Not really sure what happened.

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  42. livysma9/27/2011

    Anyone try using pie crust instead of cresent rolls? Heading to the store soon...I like the texture better but wondering if will just fall apart in the liquid

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  43. Dan Sterrett10/22/2011

    Could you use apple cider instead of Mountain Dew? I was just at an orchard today and bought a half gallon of apple cider and some honeycrisp apples and I want to make something delicious and this got such great reviews!

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  44. Jessica8/29/2012

    I'm making these tonight for the kids for breakfast in the morning. I'm going to chop my apples instead of slice them and add a little cinnamon because I love cinnamon. Chopping the apples means I can make little "pillows" out of them. I will take the advice about using less sugar too.

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  45. This is the greatest blog I have ever discovered. I literally look at it everyday. Thank you!

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  46. I am testing out comments!

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  47. Anonymous5/16/2015

    trying it this way now -- steph

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