Beautiful DIY Baked Apple Roses

Everyone loves a classic apple pie, but serving it up into beautiful slices can be a messy endeavor. So we’ve come up with a slice-free alternative for your next brunch party or dessert craving. These apple roses are beautiful to bake and even better to eat.

What You’ll Need:

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 2 red apples
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, divided in half
• 3 tablespoons apricot preserves
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 6 tablespoons Marzetti® Classic Caramel Dip
• 6 small ramekins
• Rolling pin
• Apple corer
• Pastry brush
• Baking sheet
• Pastry bag with fine tip or sturdy plastic zip-top bag
• Sifter

How to Prep the Apples:

1. Wash apples and remove cores.
2. Chop each apple in half and slice. (Each slice should be no thicker than a tortilla.)
3. Drop all apple slices in a microwave-safe bowl. Pour lemon juice over the apples.
4. Microwave apple slices for one minute so they’re soft and flexible.

How to Prep the Puff Pastry:

1. Dust a cutting board or marble countertop with half (1-1/2 teaspoons) of the flour.
2. Unfold thawed puff pastry on the floured work surface.
3. Sprinkle rolling pin with remaining flour, then roll out the puff pastry until about 1/8” thick.
4. Slice the puff pastry into six equal strips.

How to Make Apple Roses:

1. Preheat oven to 375°. Meanwhile, microwave the apricot preserves for one minute.
2. Brush inside of a baking ramekin with melted butter.
3. Spoon apricot preserves in a thin layer over one strip of puff pastry.
4. Starting at one end of the puff pastry strip, layer the apple slices so their corners overlap slightly, and keep layering until the end of the puff pastry strip.
5. Roll up the strip firmly so it resembles a rose bud, and place it inside the buttered ramekin.
6. Repeat the above steps for each strip of puff pastry and each ramekin.
7. Place the filled ramekins on baking sheet and bake in the oven for 40 minutes.
8. Cool the sheet of baked apple roses until you can handle them, then remove them from the ramekins and place on a cooling rack.
9. Fill the pastry bag or plastic zip-top bag (see expert tips on how to use) with the caramel dip.
10. Pipe caramel dip onto the edges of each rose.
11. Mix powdered sugar and ground cinnamon in a small bowl.
12. Dust each rose with the cinnamon-sugar mixture using a sifter. 

Expert Tips:

• Spice Things Up: Looking to add a more unique flavor? Substitute the apricot preserves for raspberry or orange marmalade. Or, swap out the cinnamon for pumpkin pie spice.
• Improvise if You Need to: If you don’t have a pastry bag for the caramel dip, use a large, freezer-style zip-top bag. Fill one corner of the bag and zip it shut, pressing as much air out as possible. Make a small snip the full end with scissors (you can always cut more) and drizzle away.
• Serve Like a Pro: Serve each apple rose with a scoop of strawberry ice cream and a sprig of fresh mint for a refreshing, eye-popping treat.