Apple Pie Sundaes

Inspired by the July 4th holiday weekend, I began tinkering with some festive recipes. And what's more Americana than Apple Pie? But eating a slice of pie poolside didn't seem quite right. So I started thinking about how best to incorporate all the wonderful aspects of an apple pie into a bowl of ice cream.

I fold cooked apples into a velvety, spiced caramel sauce, just perfect for drizzling over vanilla ice cream. Something about warm spices swirled into a cold ice cream really floats my boat! And to drive home that pie-y point, I made Pie Crust Crumbles. That's right, you heard me.

I made an all-butter pie crust, just as I would typically. But instead of rolling out the dough, I just simply crumbled the dough onto a sheetpan. For a little extra festive fun, I sprinkled my crumbles with rainbow nonpareils. Not only do they add color, but also a little crunch!

These ice cream fixins are easy to prep in advance and are ready for you whenever you're in the mood to dish up an Apple Pie Sundae.

Happy Fourth of July!

Apple Pie Sundaes

Ingredients

For the Pie Crust Crumbles

· 2/3 cup flour

· ¼ tsp salt

· 1 tbsp sugar

· 4 tbsp butter, chilled & diced

· 1 tsp vanilla extract

· ½ tsp almond extract

· 2-3 tbsp ice water

· Rainbow nonpareils, if desired

For the Caramel Apple Sauce

· ½ tbsp butter

· 1 gala apple, peeled & diced

· 1 granny smith apple, peeled & diced

· ½ cup cream

· 1 tbsp corn syrup

· 1 tbsp butter, melted

· 1/8 tsp salt

· ½ cup sugar

· 1 tsp vanilla extract

· ½ tsp ground cinnamon

· ¼ tsp ground ginger

· Pinch of ground cloves

For the sundaes

· 2 pints vanilla ice cream

· Whipped cream

For the Pie Crust Crumbles… combine the flour, salt and sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse in the chilled, diced butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Splash in the vanilla and almond extracts. Add the water a tablespoon at a time and pulse until the dough begins to come together. The dough should easily stick together when gathered between your thumb and fingers.

Pour the dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Gather the crumbs into a disk. Wrap the pie dough in the plastic. Chill in the freezer for about 30 minutes until firm but not frozen.

While the dough chills, preheat the oven to 375F.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Remove the pie dough from the freezer. Using a fork or your fingers, crumble the dough onto the sheet pan. Ensure the crumbles are spread evenly over the surface of the pan. If desired, scatter over rainbow sprinkles.

Bake the pie crust crumbles for 20-25 minutes until golden brown and crisp. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. Store in an airtight container until ready to serve.

For the Caramel Apple Sauce…melt ½ tbsp of butter in the bottom of a small sauce pan. Add the apples and cook over medium heat until softened. You should be able to easily pierce the apples with a fork. Remove the apples from the pan and set aside.

In a small measuring cup, combine the cream, corn syrup, melted butter, and salt. Heat for 60 to 90 seconds in the microwave until warm. Set aside.

In the same small sauce pan used to cook the apples, add the sugar. Sprinkle the sugar evenly over the bottom of the pot. Cook over medium heat, undisturbed, until the sugar completely melts and starts to caramelize. Continue to cook and gently swirl the pan until the caramel is amber in color. Remove from the heat and whisk in the warm cream mixture. Return to the heat and continue to whisk until the caramel is smooth. Stir in the vanilla extract and spices. Remove from the heat and fold in the cooked apples.

Pour the hot caramel sauce into a heat-safe jar or container. Allow to cool before placing the storage lid on top. Move to the fridge and chill until ready to serve.

Just before serving, remove the caramel from the fridge. If desired, heat the caramel in the microwave or waterbath, or serve cold. Scoop ice cream into a bowl. Drizzle heaping spoonfuls of the Caramel Apple Sauce over the ice cream. Top with Pie Crust Crumbles and a dollop of whipped cream. Enjoy immediately.

Serves 6-8

GF Friendly

Gluten Free Friendly!

I had greatest success with Better Batter gluten free flour blend.