Apple Pie Phyllo Rolls With Caramel Sauce Recipe

Everyone is familiar with the classic apple pie: a flaky crust filled with a warm, spiced apple mixture. As much as we love a traditional apple pie, sometimes we just want to switch up the classics and make something a bit fun and unusual. This recipe for apple pie phyllo rolls with caramel sauce from developer Jessica Morone from Jess Loves Baking does just that. These are a delightful twist on a classic dessert. 

The phyllo, which you can buy frozen at pretty much any grocery store, takes the place of the standard pie crust. It wraps up the sweet spicy apple pie filling in layers of flaky crispy pastry. The rolls are paired with a rich homemade caramel dipping sauce, adding an extra layer of sweetness and fun. Morone tells us that she loves these rolls because "they can be a perfect snack or dessert. Since they are like little wrapped-up pies they are portable and can be taken with you to work or a picnic. And the dip might be my favorite part!" She advises that you probably won't use all of the caramel dip with these rolls, but says "You can save it in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks in the fridge, and use it for whatever you want, like dipping freshly cut up apple slices in." 

To prepare to make this recipe first gather up the ingredients. For the apple filling grab some unsalted butter, Granny Smith apples, lemon juice, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. If Granny Smith apples aren't your favorite, they can be swapped out with other apples that are great for baking, like Pink Lady or Honeycrisp apples. For the apple pie rolls you will also need phyllo pastry, some water, and a neutral oil for frying (like vegetable or canola oil). For the caramel dipping sauce grab some granulated sugar, water, unsalted butter, heavy cream, vanilla extract, and salt. 

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat.

Add the apples, lemon juice, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt to the saucepan and stir until the apples are coated.

Cook until the apples are softened, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Let the mixture cool.

Carefully remove one of the phyllo sheets from the package (keep the rest covered). Brush it all over lightly with water.

Pull the bottom of the pastry up to the top to fold it in half.

Place ⅕ of the filling on one end leaving some space on all sides.

Fold the bottom of the pastry up to cover the filling.

Fold in the two sides of the pastry.

Roll up the rest of the roll until there is about an inch left on the top of the pastry.

Brush the top bit of pastry with water, then press into the roll to seal it, set aside. Repeat with remaining sheets and filling.

Heat 2-3 inches of oil in a Dutch oven or deep fryer to 360 F and fry 2-3 apple rolls at a time for 2 minutes each side, until golden brown.

Place the fried apple rolls on a paper towel-lined plate to cool.

Meanwhile, add the sugar and water to a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan and swirl to combine.

Heat over medium heat until the sugar dissolves and eventually turns an amber color, about 8-12 minutes. (Do not stir, just swirl the saucepan occasionally and brush down the sides of the pan to prevent crystallization).

Whisk the butter into the caramel until melted.

Slowly pour in the cream and whisk until it is completely incorporated.

Remove from the heat and whisk in vanilla extract and salt.

Pour the caramel into a separate bowl or jar and let cool until it thickens.

Dust the apple rolls with powdered sugar if desired and serve with caramel sauce for dipping.

Frying these apple pie rolls has a few advantages over cooking them in other ways. The texture ends up being perfectly crispy and flaky, they cook in just a few minutes, and frying these in oil gives them a much more decadent taste than just baking them will. But there are certainly a few reasons someone would prefer not to fry these in oil. Baking or air frying these rolls will mean that they will be less greasy and you won't have to deal with hot oil that requires monitoring. You'll still have to use some oil or butter, however, and quick frying in oil actually might mean they absorb less fat than with other methods.

A few changes will be made to the recipe in order to either bake or air fry the apple pie rolls. For baking, preheat your oven to 375 F. Place the rolls on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Brush the rolls with melted butter or a neutral oil to help them crisp up while baking. Then bake them in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes until they are golden. To air fry them, preheat your air fryer to 350 F. You will also have to brush them with melted butter or neutral oil first. Then place them in a single layer in the air fryer basket making sure they aren't touching. Air fry them for about 8-12 minutes, turning them halfway through until they are golden brown and crispy. 

Phyllo dough is notoriously tricky to deal with. It is quite thin, rips easily, and dries out very quickly. You have to be especially careful when using thawed phyllo dough because the thawing process makes it extra delicate. There are a few tips for using phyllo dough to ensure that it's easier to work with.

The first tip is to make sure you thaw the dough properly. You can't rush the process — it's best to refrigerate the package overnight from the freezer, then let it sit out on the counter for another hour before using it. It should be left in the package during this time, if you take it out of its plastic wrap it will start to dry out. Prepare the apple filling before you take the phyllo out of its packaging. Once the dough is taken out of the package, cover it with a damp kitchen towel or paper towel. Take one sheet at a time out from the stack of phyllo dough and keep the rest covered with the towel, this way the rest of the dough doesn't start drying out. 

If the dough gets small tears in it you can cut the torn pieces off, or overlap them to try to patch up the tear. If the tear is too bad just throw that sheet out and start over.