Apple Dumplings

This recipe was finally gifted to me - it was my Grandma Dorotha's recipe. The woman could cook for an army from scratch and never break a sweat! She did use to help cook at the grade school I attended! This woman also used measurements like "butter size of walnut", "enough flour to make smooth dough" or "beat till color of egg yolk". I think I now have her recipes figured out. I hope this recipe will bring wonderful memories to you or become a tradition for your family. Prep. time is approx. and will vary with your previous kitchen experience.

• Ready In: 1 hr 30 mins
• Serves: 6
• Yields: 6 Dumplings

Ingredients

• 6  apples, peeled & cored (Jonathan, Granny Smith or Golden Delicious)
• 1⁄3 cup sugar
• 1  teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3  tablespoons butter (cubed into 6 pieces)
•  pie dough
• 1  cup flour
• 1⁄3 cup  lard
• 3  tablespoons cold water
• 1⁄4 teaspoon salt

• Syrup

• 1  cup sugar
• 2  teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1  tablespoon butter
• 2  cups water or 2  cups apple cider

Directions

1. Make your pie dough or use the above recipe, chill several hours or overnight. Roll dough out into rectangle 8" x 12". Cut into 6 squares.
2. Mix together the sugar & cinnamon and set aside.
3. Peel & core apples, leaving whole. Place apple in center of the square of dough. Draw dough up the sides of the apple leaving top open. Spoon 1-2 tsps of cinnamon sugar mixture into each apple and dot with 1 piece of butter. Pinch the dough tops together to seal the apple closed. Place in bottom of 8x8 casserole dish. Set aside.
4. Cook the syrup stirring constantly until it comes to a full boil. It should be slightly thick.
5. Pour syrup over the apples and place in preheat 375º oven. Bake for 45 minutes or until golden brown. Ladle syrup over apples 2-3 times while baking.
6. Serve warm with your choice of whipped cream or ice cream. Ladle syrup over all.