These easy apple turnovers pair tender cinnamon-spiced apples with irresistibly flaky puff pastry for a fall dessert recipe your whole family will love!
You’ve probably made apple pie, apple crisp, and maybe even apple crumble, but have you ever made apple turnovers? If not, this is the time to start! They’re incredibly easy to make and if you have a weakness for flaky layers of puffy pastry, they might soon be your very favorite apple dessert!
Think of turnovers as handheld pies, or mini pies if you will. But instead of a traditional pie crust, we wrap up that apple pie filling in perfect, flaky puff pastry. Each bite of the crispy, buttery puff pastry exterior gives way to tender baked apples in the center. Oh yes!
Easy Apple Turnover Recipe
Apple turnovers really couldn’t be any easier to make, either. They start with frozen puff pastry, which means there’s no need to fuss with measuring out flour, cutting in butter, etc., for pie dough. You’ll need to roll out the puff pastry sheets so they’re the right size, but that’s it!
Tucked into the puff pastry are brown sugar and cinnamon spiced apples. To make the filling, you simply toss the apples with the seasonings and a bit of lemon juice in a mixing bowl. Once you’ve filled the apple turnovers, you bake them in the oven and serve them up warm or cooled.
This recipe makes 8 turnovers, but if you’re baking for a bigger crowd, you can make smaller apple turnovers with the quantities in the recipe card (just cut the pastry sheets smaller and use less filling per turnover), or simply double or triple the recipe. It’s easy enough that it’s not much more work to make extras!
(Can’t get enough apple recipes? Try my Apple Strudel too!)
Ingredients
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
- Granny Smith apples – Or use another firm, sweet-tart apple like Honeycrisp, Braeburn, or Pink Lady apples.
- Brown sugar – I prefer light brown sugar, but dark brown sugar works, too.
- Ground cinnamon
- Lemon juice – Just a bit keeps the apples from browning and balances the sweetness of the apple filling.
- Salt
- Frozen puff pastry – Thaw this according to the package instructions.
- Flour
- Egg – Whisk this with a tablespoon of water to form an egg wash.
- Sanding or turbinado sugar – These are optional.
Variations
Here are a few ways to customize your apple turnovers.
- Add raisins, dried cranberries, or chopped walnuts to the filling.
- Instead of dusting the outside with sugar, make a simple vanilla powdered sugar glaze and drizzle that over the tops.
- Substitute half the apples with pears.
- Swap the cinnamon for apple pie spice.
How to Make Apple Turnovers
1. Prepare
Preheat your oven to 400ºF and line two sheet pans with parchment paper.
2. Make the Apple Filling
In a large mixing bowl, toss the diced apples, sugar, cinnamon, salt, and lemon juice, ensuring that all the apples are evenly coated. Let this mixture sit for 10 minutes while you work on the puff pastry.
3. Roll Out the Puff Pastry
Use a rolling pin to roll out the puff pastry sheets to 12×12-inch squares on a lightly floured surface. Cut each sheet into 4 squares.
4. Assemble
Spoon the apple mixture into the middle of each pastry square, leaving a 1/4-inch border. Fold the squares corner-to-corner, forming a triangle, and crimp the edges with a fork to seal them.
5. Bake
Place the turnovers on the parchment-lined baking sheet and brush them with egg wash, then sprinkle them with the sugar, if you’re using it. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until the puff pastry is golden brown. Cool on a wire rack before serving.
How to Store Apple Turnovers
These turnovers are best the day they’re made, but they will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days. You can also store them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating in a 350ºF oven until warmed through.
FAQs
While you can use any type of apple in this recipe, we prefer Granny Smith apples because they hold their shape well and don’t turn to mush when cooked. They’re a great choice for whenever you’re baking!
Apple turnovers are made of a puff pastry dough filled with apples that have been tossed in brown sugar and cinnamon. They’re baked until the pastry is golden brown and flaky.
Turnovers and strudel are both types of pastries that can be filled with fruit, but there are some key differences. First, turnovers are typically made with puff pastry dough while strudel is made with a yeasted dough. Second, strudel dough is stretched very thinly so that it becomes almost transparent, while turnover dough is rolled out to a thickness of about 1/8 inch.
They can be both! Since they’re made with fruit, they make a great breakfast pastry, but they’re also sweet enough to be served as a dessert. We like to enjoy them any time of day!
More Apple Dessert Ideas
Apple Turnovers
Ingredients
- 4 Granny Smith apples diced (about 2 cups)
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- pinch of salt
- 2 sheets frozen puff pastry thawed
- flour for dusting
- 1 egg whisked with 1 tbsp water
- sanding or turbinado sugar optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F. Line two sheet trays with parchment.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the diced apples, sugar, cinnamon, salt, and lemon juice and stir to coat. Let rest for 10 minutes.
- On a work surface dusted with flour, place the sheets of puff pastry and gently roll them to roughly a 12×12 square. Cut each sheet into 4 squares.
- Using a spoon, scoop some apples into the center of each square leaving a ¼” border. Fold each square corner-to-corner to form a triangle. Using a fork, crimp the edges of each turnover.
- Brush each turnover with egg wash, sprinkle with sanding or turbinado sugar, and bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown and puffy. Transfer to a rack to cool.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
