- High in dietary fibre
- Nut free
- Peanut free
- Seafood free
- Sesame free
- Shellfish free
- Vegetarian
- 2 serves veg or fruit
Enjoy the sweetly satisfying combination of apples, spices and buttery pastry in this apple pandowdy – an old-fashioned colonial dessert that has stood the test of time.
- Serves4
- Cook time35 minutes
- Prep time10 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 sheet puff pastry
- 1 free-range egg, lightly whisked
- 80g unsalted butter, softened
- 1/4 cup (55g) brown sugar
- 1 tbs maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 1/2 tbs plain flour
- 1/3 cup (50g) raisins
- 1 lemon, rind finely grated, juiced
- 6 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, cut into 3cm pieces
- 1 tbs raw sugar
- Whipped cream, to serve
Nutritional information
Check ingredient labels to make sure they meet your specific dietary requirements and always consult a health professional before changing your diet. View dietary information here.
Percentage Daily Intake information on our recipes is calculated using the nutrition reference values for an average Australian adult.
Method
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 190°C. Grease a 30cm square, 6-cup (1.5L) ovenproof dish. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
Step 2
Place the pastry on the lined tray. Cut into 3cm squares. Brush with egg. Place in the freezer for 10 mins to chill.
Step 3
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large saucepan over low heat. Add the brown sugar, maple syrup, cinnamon, ginger and flour and cook, stirring, for 2 mins or until bubbling. Add the raisins, lemon rind and juice and stir to combine. Add the apples and stir to combine.
Step 4
Pour the apple mixture into the prepared dish. Arrange pastry squares over the top, overlapping slightly. Sprinkle evenly with raw sugar.
Step 5
Bake for 25-30 mins or until the apples are tender and the pastry is golden and crisp. Set aside for 10 mins to cool slightly. Serve with whipped cream.
Recipe tip
COOK. STORE. SAVE.
Make it ahead: Apple pandowdy can be made a day ahead if you need to get organised. Let it cool, cover loosely with foil and store it in the fridge. Remove the foil and reheat it in the oven before serving. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days, but be mindful that the crust will soften.
Tips:
The size rather than the volume of the dish is important in this recipe, so that the pastry squares can be arranged in a single, slightly overlapping way to ensure even, crisp cooking. If the dish is too small, the pastry squares will sit on top of each other and not cook properly.
We like to serve this dish with whipped cream, which offsets the sweetness of the dessert. You could also serve it with crème fraiche or ice cream.
What is apple pandowdy?
Apple pandowdy (also apple pan dowdy) is an apple cobbler-like dessert. Apple pandowdy originally dates back to colonial America, where it was prepared in a pan or deep dish. It has a spiced apple base sweetened with molasses or maple syrup and a rich pastry crust. The name is said to come from its simple or ‘dowdy’ appearance. Dowdy or not, it’s so good someone wrote a song about it, which set the charts alight in 1946. All together now: “Shoo-fly pie and apple pandowdy, make your eyes light up and your tummy say howdy...”
What’s so special about the crust on apple pandowdy?
The haphazard style of slicing up the crust is what gives this dish its signature ‘dowdy’ style. Rather than pastry, the easy topping is crafted from a sheet of butter puff pastry cut into squares, and laid in a patchwork design on top of the apple filling. This pandowdy recipe uses small, overlapping squares, but you can tailor pandowdy to the occasion with leaves, stars or any other shape using cookie cutters.
Tips and serving ideas for apple pandowdy
The smell of apple pandowdy wafting through the house will ensure a captive audience at the dinner table. With only 10 minutes of preparation, it’s an easy yet impressive dessert for a weeknight, but works equally well on a special occasion, such as a birthday or dinner party. Serve it warm out of the oven with a dollop of cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream. You can sprinkle the top with toasted walnuts or channel pandowdy’s American heritage with a handful of candied pecans.
How to use up surplus apples
Apple pandowdy is a terrific way to use up a surfeit of apples. It doesn’t matter if they’re a little past their best – older apples are great for baking, as the sugars are concentrated and deliciously sweet. This is one of many tempting apple recipes that will quickly use up the surplus in the fruit bowl. Apple pandowdy is also a great way to use up leftover pastry from other baked desserts. Once you’ve mastered this basic apple pandowdy recipe, you can try making pandowdy with different fruits, such as pears, rhubarb, stone fruits or berries.
FAQs
Apple pandowdy
- Serves4
- Cook time35 minutes
- Prep time10 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 sheet puff pastry
- 1 free-range egg, lightly whisked
- 80g unsalted butter, softened
- 1/4 cup (55g) brown sugar
- 1 tbs maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 1/2 tbs plain flour
- 1/3 cup (50g) raisins
- 1 lemon, rind finely grated, juiced
- 6 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, cut into 3cm pieces
- 1 tbs raw sugar
- Whipped cream, to serve
Description
Enjoy the sweetly satisfying combination of apples, spices and buttery pastry in this apple pandowdy – an old-fashioned colonial dessert that has stood the test of time.
Method
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 190°C. Grease a 30cm square, 6-cup (1.5L) ovenproof dish. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
Step 2
Place the pastry on the lined tray. Cut into 3cm squares. Brush with egg. Place in the freezer for 10 mins to chill.
Step 3
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large saucepan over low heat. Add the brown sugar, maple syrup, cinnamon, ginger and flour and cook, stirring, for 2 mins or until bubbling. Add the raisins, lemon rind and juice and stir to combine. Add the apples and stir to combine.
Step 4
Pour the apple mixture into the prepared dish. Arrange pastry squares over the top, overlapping slightly. Sprinkle evenly with raw sugar.
Step 5
Bake for 25-30 mins or until the apples are tender and the pastry is golden and crisp. Set aside for 10 mins to cool slightly. Serve with whipped cream.