Are you looking for an easy and impressive desert to bring for Thanksgiving dinner this year? Or perhaps a fun solution for you and the kids to use up all your riches from apple picking?  We have you covered! This year I decided to try out two out-of-the-box, kid-friendly apple treats, and both of my daughters and I were pleasantly surprised with the results.

Apple Butter

First up, we decided to try making something I’ve never even tasted… apple butter. I was inspired after seeing a cookie recipe from my favorite chef, Tiegan Gerard, that called for apple butter as an ingredient. Upon further investigation, I realized that apple butter is easy to make and can be used in a variety of ways for breakfast, appetizers, dessert or snacks. For example, apple butter pairs well with pancakes and cookies, can be added to a charcuterie board with meats and cheese or spread on biscuits and toast. The sweet taste of apple butter might even work as a dip for kids who are picky eaters (like mine!) to try with a vegetable.

Spoiler alert: cooking apple butter will fill your house with the most delicious smell, and I promise it tastes even better.

I enlisted my youngest apple-picker (age 2) for this task by outfitting her in her apron and we got to work. I’ve found it’s easier and more fun to convince the kids to join me in cooking when they get to wear their aprons and chef’s hats.

If you find it hard to carve out the time to shop for intricate ingredients and put together complicated recipes, then you’ll appreciate this apple butter recipe. All the ingredients are baking necessities you likely already have in your pantry and spice rack, combined with the fact minimal prep time is needed and there is not a lot of hands-on work, all of which are definite bonuses for busy parents.

What You’ll Need

• Crockpot
• 6 Apples cored, peeled and sliced
• ½ Cup Brown Sugar
• 1 Tbs White Sugar
• 1 Tsp Cinnamon
• ½ Tsp Vanilla
• ¼ Tsp Nutmeg

The Prep

If you plan to make apple butter with your younger kids, I highly recommend doing all the prep ahead of time and having them join once you’re ready to begin cooking. As I mentioned, apple butter does not require a lot a prep, but this part could be tough for younger kids to help with, so you don’t want them feeling discouraged before the real fun starts. The prep consists of needing to core, peel and slice your apples. I cut mine about a quarter of an inch thick, but there is no need to be too precise here.

Next, I pre-measured all the ingredients so that my two-year-old could get to do all the “heavy lifting” once I got her involved.

Get to Work

With the crockpot off, I had my two-year-old Addie pile in the apples. She could not have been more excited about this task. It was as if she was making her own potion. Next, I had her sprinkle in each of the pre-measured ingredients and mix everything together.

From there, set your crockpot to low and let the mixture cook for 10 to 10.5 hours. I did stir occasionally, just to check in on how everything was going. Addie liked to stir as well, so make sure you let your little one use a long spoon so their hands don’t touch the sides of the crock pot.

Once your apples are done cooking, transfer the mix to a blender and puree until the consistency becomes smooth. When all of the chunks are gone, put the mixture back into the crockpot and let cook an additional 30 minutes on low. A note here: for the final step you will want to leave the top of the crockpot open.

The Results

Once you finish cooking the apple butter, transfer it to whatever airtight container you would like to store it in. We chose to use a mason jar with a lid and keep it refrigerated.

My incredibly picky eating five-year-old did the first taste test of the apple butter, opting to dip apple slices into the “butter” before declaring that she “can’t even handle it.” To me, that’s the sign of a clear success!

The Recipe

1. Cut, core, peel and slice up 6 large sized apples
2. Place apples into crockpot
3. Top apples with brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and nutmeg
4. Cook on low for 10.5 hours stirring occasionally
5. Transfer mixture to blender and puree well
6. Put puree back in crockpot and let cook for additional 30 minutes with lid open
7. Transfer to an airtight container and enjoy!

Apple Roll Ups

Next up on our list of out-of-the-box cooking ventures with young kids is apple roll-ups. This item is exactly as what it sounds like: delicious dough rolled up and stuffed with apples inside, combined with all the yummy seasonings that you would find in an apple pie or crisp.

What is a major win with apple roll-ups is unlike a pie or crisp which are larger, the roll-ups are bite sized, so they are a perfect hands-on baking experience and snack for kids (as well as parents and grandparents too).

Ingredients:

• 1 Apple cored, peeled, and sliced
• 1 Container Crescent Rolls
• Apple Butter (homemade or store bought)
• 1 Tbs Brown Sugar
• 3 Tbs Butter

Super Simple Assembly

This recipe is EASY! As a bonus, if you first make the apple butter recipe from above, it pairs perfectly with the apple roll-ups. If you didn’t make homemade apple butter, don’t worry – apple butter from the store works just the same.

If you prep and separate the ingredients on your countertop, this is the perfect recipe for your little chefs to do essentially all on their own. My five-year-old was able to do this with very little help. She had a blast and was very proud of herself.

Basically, all you need to do here is spread apple butter on the laid-out crescent roll dough sheet then roll it up with the apple slices inside. You will then top the dough with melted butter and a sprinkle of brown sugar. This recipe really is that easy.

As an option, you can also top the dough with nutmeg, cinnamon or any other spices for added flavor.

The finished product is a yummy apple turnover that was both adult and kid approved in my house!

The Recipe

1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit
2. Grease cookie sheet
3. Lay out crescent rolls in their pre-cut triangles
4. Spread a generous amount of apple butter onto each triangle
5. Put apple at large corner
6. Roll-up tightly starting at larger corner
7. Melt butter
8. Spread melted butter on top of rolled crescent rolls
9. Sprinkle with brown sugar
10. Bake for 14 minutes

I hope you like these two easy kid-friendly apple treats! If you try them out, be sure to tag me, @snfenlon and @capecodmoms. Happy baking!