Pies and crumbles are great any time of year, but chilly weather makes them extra special. These warm desserts should get you through the coldest nights.
1. Apple Pie a la Mode
Apple pie is the platonic form of the pie. If you want to experiment with making your own crust, a challenge but one worth undertaking, this is a great place to start.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F. Fit one crust into a 9-inch pie plate.
- Toss apples with sugar, flour, spices, salt and lemon juice. Fill crust; dot with butter.
- Add top crust; seal edges and cut vents. Beat egg with water; brush over crust.
- Bake 20 minutes. Reduce to 375°F; bake 35–40 minutes until golden and bubbling. Shield edges if needed.
- Cool 3 hours. Warm slices briefly; serve each with 1/2 cup ice cream.
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2. Skillet Fried Apples
Skillet-fried apples are apple pie without the work of a crust. They're not just dessert either — they go as well with a pork chop as they do over ice cream.
Ingredients
Method
- Core apples; cut into 1/2-inch wedges.
- Melt butter in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add apples; cook 6 minutes, turning occasionally.
- Add sugar, spices and salt; stir until sugar melts. Add lemon juice and cider.
- Cover; cook 3–5 minutes until tender. Uncover; cook 1 minute to thicken sauce.
3. Cinnamon Roll Bread Pudding
My easy cinnamon roll bread pudding is a great use of your leftover cinnamon rolls for a family favorite dessert. The sweet cinnamon rolls are soaked in a rich sauce and then baked until tender.
Angela Latimer / Bake It With Love
4. Creamy Rice Pudding
While today's pudding is rich, creamy, and moist, we'll be putting key twist on this classic, by mixing in rum-soaked raisins. The end result is a layered sweetness, framed in copious rum-essence, while maintaining all of the delicious qualities that have made rice pudding a seasonal staple.
Living the Gourmet / Living the Gourmet
5. Apple Crisp
Homemade Apple Crisp is hands down one of our go-to desserts when we need to whip up a quick and tasty treat. Warm spiced apples nestled beneath a lightly sweetened oat and nut crumble topping so comforting and homey!
Tonia Schemmel / Feasting at Home
6. Blackberry Cobbler
A cobbler is perfect for when you want a fully homemade baked good, but don't want the trouble of a crust. Blackberry is one of the best fillings, and frozen berries are totally fine for midwinter.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 375°F. Grease a 2-quart baking dish.
- Toss fruit with 1/2 cup sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice; spread in dish.
- Mix flour, topping sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut in butter; stir in milk just until combined.
- Drop dough over fruit. Bake 40–50 minutes until topping is cooked through and filling bubbles at the center.
- Rest 15 minutes before serving. Serve with ice cream if desired.
7. Blueberry Cobbler
Blueberry cobbler will forever taste of the Maine Coast to me. I'd also add some lemon zest, as it goes so well with anything blueberry.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 375°F. Grease a 2-quart baking dish.
- Toss fruit with 1/2 cup sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice; spread in dish.
- Mix flour, topping sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut in butter; stir in milk just until combined.
- Drop dough over fruit. Bake 40–50 minutes until topping is cooked through and filling bubbles at the center.
- Rest 15 minutes before serving. Serve with ice cream if desired.
8. Plum Cobbler
Plum cobbler is one of those old-fashioned recipes that deserves a revisit. The almond crunch on top is a nice add-on.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 375°F. Grease a 2-quart baking dish.
- Toss fruit with 1/2 cup sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice; spread in dish.
- Mix flour, topping sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut in butter; stir in milk just until combined.
- Drop dough over fruit. Sprinkle with sliced almonds. Bake 40–50 minutes until topping is cooked through and filling bubbles at the center.
- Rest 15 minutes before serving.
9. Cherry Cobbler
Cherry is almost certainly my favorite cobbler. This recipe uses 100 percent sweet cherries, but I like a mix of sour and sweet, or even 100 percent sour, letting the sugar do the sweetening.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 375°F. Grease a 2-quart baking dish.
- Toss fruit with 1/2 cup sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice; spread in dish.
- Mix flour, topping sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut in butter; stir in milk just until combined.
- Drop dough over fruit. Bake 40–50 minutes until topping is cooked through and filling bubbles at the center.
- Rest 15 minutes before serving.
10. Cranberry-Pear Crumble
I think cooked pears need a healthy dose of tartness to make a flavorful dessert when cooked. Cranberries do the job admirably in this recipe.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 375°F. Grease a 2-quart baking dish.
- Toss pears and cranberries with sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice; spread in dish.
- Mix oats, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt and butter; scatter over fruit.
- Bake 40–45 minutes until topping browns and fruit bubbles throughout. Rest 15 minutes.
11. Peach-Blueberry Cobbler
Peach is probably the best-known, most quintessential cobbler. Here, this dessert staple gets a fresh twist with blueberries.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 375°F. Grease a 2-quart baking dish.
- Toss fruit with 1/2 cup sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice; spread in dish.
- Mix flour, topping sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut in butter; stir in milk just until combined.
- Drop dough over fruit. Bake 40–50 minutes until topping is cooked through and filling bubbles at the center.
- Rest 15 minutes before serving.
12. Chocolate Lava Cakes
Honestly, I've never been a fan of chocolate lava cakes, but I realize that I am in the minority of the minority — it was a much-loved dessert in my household by everyone except me. This recipe shows you how to bring that wow factor to your house.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F. Grease four 6-ounce ramekins; dust with cocoa.
- Melt chocolate and butter together; cool 5 minutes.
- Beat eggs, yolks and sugar until thick. Fold in chocolate, flour and salt.
- Divide among ramekins. Bake 12–14 minutes until edges set and centers remain soft.
- Rest 1 minute. Loosen edges; invert onto plates and serve immediately.
13. Baked Apples with Walnuts and Cranberries
Baked apples need some dressing up to truly shine. This recipe adds a wide range of dried fruits and nuts, as well as some granola, for a hearty dessert.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 375°F. Core apples from the top, leaving the bottoms intact; widen openings slightly.
- Mix walnuts, cranberries, granola, sugar and cinnamon. Fill apples; top with butter.
- Set in an 8-inch baking dish; pour juice around them.
- Bake 35–45 minutes until tender but intact. Spoon pan juices over apples.
14. Baked Apple Dumplings
I always think of apple dumplings as a sort of frontier dessert, long-since forgotten. However, they're worth revisiting — go fetch your coonskin hat and your musket.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 375°F. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
- Roll each crust into an 8-by-16-inch rectangle; cut into two 8-inch squares. Center an apple on each square.
- Mix brown sugar and cinnamon; fill apple centers with mixture and half the butter. Fold pastry around apples; pinch seams closed.
- Arrange in dish. Simmer water, sugar, lemon juice and remaining butter 2 minutes; pour around dumplings.
- Bake 40–50 minutes until golden and apples are tender. Spoon sauce over servings.
15. Baked Pears with Honey and Nuts
While I think a fresh pear is a near-perfect thing, I've never much cared for them cooked. This recipe might be changing my mind though, with honey and nuts bringing character. A little allspice would be amazing too.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 375°F. Halve pears; scoop out cores.
- Arrange cut-side up in a small baking dish. Fill with nuts and cranberries; drizzle with honey and add cinnamon and butter.
- Pour water into dish. Bake 25–35 minutes until pears are tender.
16. Christmas Pudding with Caramel Sauce
Christmas pudding is the sort of thing that belongs at the feast table with Bob Cratchit and Ebenezer Scrooge. The flavors are more than Victorian; they're almost Medieval, all dried fruit and spices, and I'll take that over a Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cake any day.
Ingredients
Method
- Soak dried fruit in orange juice 1 hour. Grease a 1 1/2-quart pudding basin.
- Mix breadcrumbs, flour, sugar, baking powder, spices and salt. Stir in fruit and juice, butter, eggs, apple and zest.
- Spoon into basin. Cover with a pleated sheet of greased parchment and foil; tie tightly with kitchen string.
- Place on a rack in a covered pot. Add boiling water halfway up basin; simmer gently 3 hours, replenishing water.
- Check pudding with a skewer; it should emerge clean. Rest 10 minutes; unmold. Warm caramel sauce and spoon over servings.
17. Orange Chocolate Melting Puddings
As our British friends know, chocolate and orange go great together, especially at Christmastime. The orange zest and juice add a beautiful zing.
Ingredients
Method
- Heat oven to 425°F. Grease four 6-ounce ramekins; dust with cocoa.
- Melt chocolate and butter; cool 5 minutes. Beat eggs, yolks and sugar until thick.
- Fold chocolate, flour, zest and juice into egg mixture. Divide among ramekins.
- Bake 12–14 minutes until edges set and centers remain soft. Rest 1 minute; invert onto plates.
18. Fried Bananas with Honey and Cinnamon
I'm a few years clean off my fried-banana addiction, which was my absolute favorite street food while living in Bangkok. If I ever fall off the wagon, this is the recipe I'll use.
Ingredients
Method
- Peel bananas; halve lengthwise.
- Melt butter in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Cook bananas 2 minutes per side until golden.
- Lower heat; add honey and cinnamon. Spoon sauce over bananas; serve warm.