Easy cinnamon stewed apples recipe made with tart Bramley apples and flavoured with warming cinnamon spice.
As well as crumbles and pies, stewed apples can be used in muffins, flapjacks, cakes, and chutneys. They can be also spooned onto pancakes for breakfast, and even served as a quick dessert with ice cream or custard!
Stewing apples from my big Bramley apple tree is one of my favourite activities during the Autumn months.
I like to make large batches and freeze them in portions, so I'm never too far away from an apple crumble or apple pie.
👩🍳 Don't forget to check out my stewed rhubarb and stewed plum recipes too!
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✔️ Why should you try it?
- Easy to make stewed apples flavoured with cinnamon.
- Freezer friendly.
- Kid-friendly.
- Can be used in so many different bakes and desserts.
🥘 Ingredients
- Cooking Apples - washed, peeled, and quartered. I use Bramley apples, the most popular type of cooking apple.
- Lemon Juice - a squeeze of lemon juice helps prevent the apples from browning whilst you're peeling and chopping.
- Brown Sugar - I find that brown sugar gives the apples a lovely caramel flavour. You can also use honey or maple syrup.
- Cinnamon Stick - provides a subtle warmth to the apples. You can also use nutmeg or ground ginger to flavour them.
- Water - a splash of water helps break the cooking apples down during cooking.
🔪 Instructions
The recipe card with ingredient quantities and detailed instructions can be found at the bottom of the post
One: Wash, peel and chop the cooking apples into 3-4 cm chunks.
Two: Weigh out the sugar, cut the lemon in half and get a cinnamon stick from your spice cupboard.
Three: Put the chopped apples in a pan and squeeze over a little lemon juice (about half a lemon). Stir in the brown sugar, cinnamon stick, and 20ml of water.
Four: Simmer on the hob, stirring often, for about 15 minutes. Allow to cool and test the sweetness. Add more sugar or honey if needed.
🍴 Serving suggestions
There are so many ways to use stewed apples. Here are a few ideas to try;
- Apple pies or apple pie bars.
- Crumbles - cinnamon apple crumble, plum and apple crumble or apple and mincemeat crumble (which is a big hit at Christmas).
- Muffins - cinnamon apple muffins, or replace the mincemeat in my spiced mincemeat muffins with stewed apples.
- Served on scotch pancakes.
- Red cabbage.
- Cakes - like this apple crumble loaf cake with custard icing.
- Chutney.
- Stuffing.
- Sausage rolls.
- Apple sauce.
- Apple turnovers - my apple and blackberry turnovers are a popular after-school snack in this house.
📖 Variations
- Make the stewed apple healthier by leaving out the sugar and using honey to sweeten the apples instead. It's best to do this after they have been stewed and cooled.
- Swap the cinnamon stick for 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon.
- Flavour the apples with vanilla instead of cinnamon. Use a vanilla pod or 1 teaspoon of vanilla paste.
- Use pears instead of apples for cinnamon stewed pears.
🥡 Storage
Store: The stewed apples will keep in a sealed container in the fridge for up to a week. I often stir them into porridge or greek yogurt for breakfast, or serve them with custard or ice cream for a quick dessert.
🧊 Suitable for freezing?
Stewed apples freeze really well. Let the apples cool completely and place them in a freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months.
Did you know you can also store crumble topping in the freezer too? I never like to be too far away from a homemade apple crumble!
❓ FAQS
Any apples can be stewed in this way, but if you're using eating apples you will need to reduce the amount of sugar you add to them. I personally prefer to use cooking apples like Bramleys.
To make the stewed apples healthier, replace the brown sugar with a reduced amount of honey.
It's always best to peel apples for stewing. Some apple skins, particularly on cooking apples can be thick and tough.
😋Related recipes
Here are some more recipes using apples;
- Cinnamon Apple Crumble
- Apple Pie Bars
- Apple Flapjacks
- Apple Muffins
- Apple and Blackberry Turnovers
- Apple and Blackberry Crumble
- Apple Crumble Bars
Have you seen my blueberry compote recipe? Another delicious recipe using seasonal fruit!
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Recipe
Easy Cinnamon Stewed Apples
Ingredients
- 1 kg Cooking Apples
- 1 Lemon juice only
- 110 g Light Brown Sugar
- 1 Cinnamon Stick
- 20 ml Water
Instructions
- Peel and chop the cooking apples and place in a pan, Squeeze lemon juice over them (juice of half a lemon should be enough).1 kg Cooking Apples, 1 Lemon
- Mix in the light brown sugar, cinnamon stick and water.110 g Light Brown Sugar, 1 Cinnamon Stick, 20 ml Water
- Simmer on a medium-low heat for 15 minutes, stirring often to prevent the apples sticking to the bottom of the pan. If you find the apples are a bit watery just spoon any excess water out.
- Allow to cool and test sweetness. If you want the apples to be a bit sweeter add more sugar or honey.
Lisalia
Yummy! Cinnamon and apple is one of my favorite fall flavor combos. These were delicious!
Chichi
Apple and cinnamon are a great combination and perfect for fall. This stewed Apple must be delicious. Can’t wait to try it.
Jersey Girl Cooks
Yum! I always need a batch of these is my fridge!
Cate
Oh these look just perfect for fall! I bet they make your home smell amazing while baking too, saving!
Priya Lakshminarayan
That just sounds so comforting! Loving the flavors here
Dannii
I adore cinnamon apple and these look amazing. Lots of ways to use them too.
Jen
Thanks for giving freezing directions. I think I'll put them in single serving size pouches to grab easily. So perfect for Fall!
Alison
We went apple picking this weekend and have a ton of apples to use! I've been looking for some simple recipes, and this one is perfect! I have all the ingredients already, and this recipe is so easy and delicious!
Maria San Juan
This definitely looks like it could also use a scoop of Vanilla ice cream. Very awesome and easy recipe ^_^ Thank you for sharing it.
Beth
My husband is going to love this recipe! Can't wait to give this a try!