Down Farmhouse Apple Dumpling
Tender Bramley cooking apples filled with spiced brown sugar, encased in rich suet pastry, and steamed until melt-in-the-mouth soft.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 45 min
- Total
- 70 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Calories
- 485 kcal
Equipment
- •Large steamer pot with lid
- •Apple corer
- •Rolling pin
- •Large mixing bowl
- •Greaseproof paper
- •Kitchen foil
Nutrition
Per serving, approximate
- Calories
- 485 kcal
- fat
- 22 g
- carbs
- 68 g
- fibre
- 4 g
- protein
- 5 g
- calories
- 485 kcal
Instructions
- 1
Mix the plain flour, baking powder, and salt together in a large mixing bowl.
- 2
Stir in the shredded beef suet until evenly distributed throughout the dry ingredients.
- 3
Add cold water gradually, mixing gently with a knife until a soft, cohesive dough forms.
- 4
Divide the dough into four equal pieces on a lightly floured work surface.
- 5
Combine the soft brown sugar, ground cinnamon, and softened butter in a small bowl.
- 6
Peel and core each apple, keeping the base intact if possible.
- 7
Pack the spiced sugar and butter mixture tightly into the core cavity of each apple.
- 8
Roll each dough portion into a round disc roughly five millimetres thick.
- 9
Place an apple in the centre of each disc and draw the pastry upwards.
- 10
Pinch all pastry edges securely at the top with damp fingers to seal completely.
- 11
Wrap each dumpling loosely in pleated greaseproof paper and foil to allow room for rising.
- 12
Place dumplings in a steamer over simmering water and steam with the lid on for 45 minutes.
Chef's tips
Make sure to pinch and seal the pastry edges thoroughly so the melting brown sugar filling stays trapped inside during steaming. Choose firm cooking apples that will soften without collapsing into liquid.
Ingredient substitutions
- shredded beef suet → vegetable suet (for a vegetarian version)
- soft dark brown sugar → demerara sugar or golden caster sugar
Storage
Store leftover cooled dumplings in an airtight container in the fridge for up to two days.
Reheating
Reheat by steaming gently in a covered steamer over boiling water for 15 minutes until piping hot throughout.
Common mistakes to avoid
- •Wrapping the foil too tightly around the dumpling, which prevents the suet pastry from expanding and turning light.
- •Letting the steamer boil dry during cooking; always monitor and top up with boiling water as needed.
- •Failing to seal the pastry seams tightly, allowing the sweet spiced filling to leak out into the steamer.
Serving suggestions
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