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These flaky Apple Turnovers are filled with tart apples and cinnamon and taste just like mini homemade apple pies (but without all the work)!
Apple Turnovers are one of my favorite quick and easy treats to whip up. Thanks to store-bought puff pastry, they come together in minutes. No fancy tools or skills required! Enjoy them warm from the oven, straight in your hand, or make them more of a dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice cream over the top. I love making these as a quick breakfast or easy after school snack for the kiddos. No matter when you serve them they are guaranteed to be a hit!
🩷 Heidi
Key Ingredients
- Puff pastry dough – Find this in the freezer aisle. They usually come on packs of 2.
- Granny Smith apples – For any kind of pie filling I always use a tart apple. Granny Smith apples are perfect because they are tart, crisp, and easy to find at most grocery stores.
- Filling ingredients – For the apple filling I like to combine butter, brown sugar, a little apple pie spice with the apples and then some corn starch for thickening.
- Powdered sugar glaze – For the glaze over the top, all you need is a little milk and powdered sugar. If you like a thicker glaze you can either add more powdered sugar or use cream instead of milk.
Fresh Apples vs Apple Pie Filling
I like using fresh apples for their crispiness and fresh flavor. However, if you are short on time, or prefer the taste, you can use canned apple pie filling in your turnovers. Using the canned filling will cut down on a few steps and some ingredients because you won’t have to make your own apple mixture, all you would need to do is spoon the filling directly onto the puff pastry squares and bake as usual!
How to Make Apple Turnovers Step-by-Step
- Prep the Apples – Peel and slice the apples, then toss them with lemon juice to prevent browning.
- Make the Filling – Cook apples with butter, brown sugar, and apple pie spice over medium heat for 5 minutes. Stir in a cornstarch-water mixture and cook until thickened, then remove from heat.
- Prepare the Dough – Unfold puff pastry sheets and cut each into 4 equal squares (8 squares total).
- Fill – Spoon about 3 tablespoons of filling onto one half of each square.
- Fold over into a triangle, seal edges by pressing or crimping, and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush each turnover with egg wash.
- Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes or until golden and puffed. Cool until just warm. Prepare glaze and drizzle over the top.
Serving Ideas
If you want to get all fancy, you have got to try these turnovers with a scoop of homemade vanilla ice cream with a spoonful of caramel sauce over the top (it’s such a delicious dessert, trust me). You can also try them with a dollop of homemade whipped cream. This might sound weird to some of you but I also love eating these with slices of extra sharp cheddar cheese, the good, fancy kind. There’s just something about sharp cheddar and apples that make the perfect combo and this is no exception!
Expert Tips and Suggestions
Keep the puff pastry cold. Cold pastry puffs better in the oven. If it warms up while you’re working, pop it back in the fridge for a few minutes before baking.
Don’t overfill the turnovers. Too much filling can cause the turnovers to burst open or leak in the oven. A heaping spoonful is plenty for each.
Seal the edges well. Use a fork to crimp the edges and brush with a little water or egg wash before sealing to keep the filling inside.
Bake on parchment paper. Inevitably you will get a pastry or two that will leak when baking. Using a parchment liner will not only prevent sticking but also makes cleanup easy if/when any filling leaks out. You can also use a silicone mat for this.
Cool before serving. The filling will be molten straight out of the oven. Let them rest for a few minutes so the flavors settle and you don’t burn your mouth. Cooling will also keep the glaze from melting immediately when piped on.
Frequently Asked Questions
Apple turnovers are delicious both ways. Fresh from the oven, the pastry is crisp and warm; cooled, they’re soft and sweet. It really depends on what you are in the mood for.
Yes. You can assemble and refrigerate unbaked turnovers for up to a day before baking, or freeze them (unbaked or baked) for later. To reheat, bake at 350°F until warm and crisp.
Reheat in a 350°F oven for 5–10 minutes to restore crispness. You can also reheat them in the Air Fryer at 350 for 2-3 minutes. Avoid microwaving, as it can make the pastry soggy.
More Easy Hand-Held Pastry Recipes
Have you tried these Apple Turnovers? I’d love to hear what you think! Drop a comment below and let me know how you liked them. And don’t forget to take a pic and tag us on Instagram @favoritefamilyrecipes! 🍏🥧
Apple Turnovers
Ingredients
- 2 sheets puff pastry
- 4 Granny Smith apples
- 1 small lemon
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup brown sugar packed
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 2 teaspoons apple pie spice (see notes)
- 1 egg white
- 1 teaspoon water
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.Peel and slice apples. I used large apples for this so I cut down some of the slices even smaller so they could fit in the pastries. Squeeze in the juice of 1 small lemon to keep the apples from browning.
- Combine apples, butter, brown sugar, apple pie spice in a medium sized sauce pan and cook over medium-heat for about 5 minutes until apples become soft and the sugar has become smooth.
- Combine cornstarch and water and pour it over the apples, stir until sauce thickens (about 1 more minute). Remove from heat and set aside.
- Unfold pastry sheets and trim into a perfect square if needed. Most of the time the pastry is already a perfect square but sometimes I will have to trim it. This will ensure all your pastries are evenly sized.Cut the pastry dough into even fourths so you have four smaller squares per pastry sheet (8 smaller squares total).
- Spoon about 3 tablespoons of apples into one half of the square, keeping the apples away from the edges for easier sealing.
- Fold over the dough from one corner to the other making a triangle. Press and crimp the edges together, sealing completely. Place the turnovers on a parchment lined baking sheet.
- Make an egg wash my whisking together 1 teaspoon water and 1 egg white until foamy. Brush the tops of each pastry with the egg wash, then bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes or until puffy and golden.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for 15-20 minutes or until completely cooled.
- While cooling, make the glaze by combining the powdered sugar and milk. Stir until smooth. Adjust the thickness of the glaze to your liking by adding either more milk or more powdered sugar.
- Spoon glaze evenly over the pastries and serve!
