Chef notes
Pandowdy is fun to say but it’s even more enjoyable to eat. This easy apple dessert features a spiced apple filling that’s “dowdied” up with a puff pastry topping (hence the historic name, which is said to have been introduced by German immigrants during the American colonial period). It’s just as delicious and crowd-friendly as an apple pie but so much easier to make. A pandowdy can contain any fruit filling but arguably the most popular is apple. Chop up a combination of baking apples such as tart Granny Smith, sweet, hearty Pink Lady or the always accessible Honeycrisp. Toss with a combination of brown sugar, a bevy of warm spices (cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and nutmeg), lemon juice and butter.
What makes this dessert so remarkably easy and foolproof is the topping. You can keep the food processor and pastry cutter tucked away — all you need is a box of frozen puff pastry. Roll it out, cut it into triangles and scatter the dough pieces over the apples. Brush with an egg wash and sprinkle with sanding sugar for a glistening, golden brown finish.
Swap Option: Try pears instead of apples, or a combination of the two, for a sweet autumnal dessert.
Get Ingredients: If you don’t have everything you need on hand, you can easily purchase all of the ingredients (just click the orange button below that says ‘Get Ingredients’). You can pick and choose exactly what ingredients you need based on what’s in your pantry and they’ll be on your doorstep before you know it.
Ingredients
- 3 pounds apples, mixed variety, 1-inch dice (about 10 apples)
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed
- 1 (14- to 17-ounce) package frozen puff pastry sheets, thawed
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 3 tablespoons turbinado or sanding sugar, for sprinkling
Preparation
1.Preheat the oven to 425 F.
2.In a large mixing bowl, add chopped apples, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, nutmeg and salt and toss to combine. Drizzle lemon juice over the mixture and stir to combine. Add cubed butter and toss to combine.
3.Transfer the apple mixture to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish and set aside.
4.Lightly dust a cutting board with flour. Roll out the puff pastry sheets to a roughly 12-by-10-inch rectangle. Use a pizza cutter or sharp chef’s knife to cut the pastry into 1-inch wide strips, then cut into triangles.
5.Arrange the cut pastry pieces over the apple mixture, overlapping some pieces, until the filling is covered and all of the dough is used. Brush the pastry with the beaten egg, then sprinkle with sanding sugar.
6.Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown and the filling is bubbling. Cool for 20 to 30 minutes before serving.
