This is a 5 ingredient Easy Apple & Pecan Pandowdy Recipe that uses ready-made pie crusts. Tart Granny Smith Apples are layered with lots of light brown sugar and pecans.
Apple Pandowdy - Then & Now
(The original post was here on the blog 3/2011 and then was updated 12/2024 with the help of my new friend, Photographer Tabatha Finch.)
This was one of my first blog posts over a decade ago! Can you believe it? I even made a video to go with it in 2011, see the link below. I had just finished helping build a set at the local tv station during my college internship and was enamored with set design and making videos.
I much preferred to be behind the camera (as you can probably tell.) So I built a little vintage kitchen set in the garage at our house on 37th Street. It wasn't a functional kitchen but it was my fun little playhouse of sorts.
When I searched Apple Pandowdy on YouTube, I found that in 2019 the ladies from Americas Test Kitchen had stumbled upon my youtube video and copied my Dinah Shore performance. 🙂 The Grammy goes to Moi, I'm afraid. Ha Ha.
Apple Pandowdy in Various Forms
Apple Pandowdy is a testament to the timeless appeal of old-fashioned homemade desserts.
As the years have passed, the recipe evolved, adapting to modern tastes and less time in the kitchen. The classic version involves a labor-intensive process of making pie crusts from scratch and meticulously layering ingredients. I'll have that recipe to you soon. In the meantime, you might like my Award Winning Recipe for Crock-Pot Apple Cake.
Ready Made Pie Crusts
This recipe came from an old cookbook, probably circa 1970. I have no idea what cookbook that was or if I even still have it but you can see I got a shot of the recipe in the video. We can see this recipe is from Mrs. Howard F. Baer.
Craft this Apple Pandowdy with just five ingredients and enjoy the ease of ready-made pie crusts.
Let's Make Apple Pandowdy, The Easy Way
Watch the steps in my almost VINTAGE now, video! 🙂 While you are there, I'd love it if you'd Subscribe to my Youtube Channel. Click on the TV to see my long-lost AWKWARD Youtube video.
Bake in a Cast Iron Skillet
Now, let's talk about the vessel that can elevate your Apple Pandowdy experience—the cast iron skillet. While the original recipe says to bake it in a baking dish, I decided to use a cast iron skillet.
The even heat distribution of cast iron ensures that your Apple Pandowdy bakes to perfection, with a golden-brown crust and tender, filling. The skillet's ability to retain and radiate heat also gives nice caramelization to the edges.
There's a certain charm to serving a bubbling, aromatic Apple Pandowdy straight from a rustic cast iron skillet!
Easy Old Fashioned Apple and Pecan Pandowdy Recipe
Equipment
- 9 or 10 inch baking dish or skillet
Ingredients
- 2 9-inch frozen pastry pie shells
- 8 Granny Smith apples, cored and peeled
- ½ cup butter or margarine
- 2 ½ cups light brown sugar (divided into ½ cups)
- 1 cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Remove crusts from freezer and let thaw at room temperature while you core, peel and slice the apples.
- In a microwave safe bowl, melt the butter.
- Add ½ cup light brown sugar to the butter. Stir.
- Spread mixture in the bottom of a 10-inch baking dish.
- With your hands, tear one of the lightly thawed pie shells into 2 inch pieces and and place over the mixture.
- In another bowl, stir together the remaining 2 cups of brown sugar and pecans.
- Add a layer of apples on top of the crust layer, sprinkle on the pecan-sugar mixture.
- Place the other pie shell on top, upside down and press down to form a dome over the apples. Prick top with a fork 4 times.
- Bake for 45 minutes to an hour. Let rest for at least 30 minutes before serving.
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