These Stovetop Sautéed Cinnamon Apples taste like a warm apple pie, but they come together in 5 minutes and are SO much healthier! This recipe makes a perfect breakfast, snack, or dessert and is gluten, dairy and refined sugar free!
I can describe my favorite thing about fall in two simple words... Apple. Season! If you find yourself with an abundance of delicious fall apples, you need to make these Sautéed Cinnamon Apples! Not only are they super easy to whip up, but they're healthy and delicious!
These sautéed cinnamon apples are like eating a warm apple pie (or apple crumble pie), but without the crust! They take 5 minutes to prepare and can be used in a variety of ways!
Serve these Cinnamon Apples as a topping over pancakes, scoop them onto some vanilla ice cream or just eat them with a spoon for a healthy sweet treat! They fit just about every dietary need! They are gluten-free, refined-sugar free and can be made dairy-free too!
One of the reasons I created this healthy cinnamon apples recipe is so that my sweet babies could enjoy eating apples too! These soft, cinnamony, bite-sized apples are perfect for adults and kids of all ages! {Note: when I serve these apples to my babies I do peel them first}!
Sautéed Cinnamon Apples: Ingredients & Substitutions.
Let's start by chatting about the ingredients in these cinnamon apples! This recipe uses coconut oil or butter, cinnamon, a dash of salt, vanilla and a touch of maple syrup to create the tastiest little bits of apple bliss you've ever eaten! Here are a few possible substitutes that could be made in this recipe.
- Apple Variety. I recommend honey crisp or pink lady apples, but any variety works beautifully in this recipe! Here are some suggestions:
- Gala
- Jonagold
- Golden delicious
- Honey Crisp
- Pink Lady (pictured in this post)
- Granny Smith
- Jazz
- Coconut oil. Butter or ghee can be used in place of coconut oil with delicious results! As you can see, I used butter in the photos and coconut oil in the video. Both taste amazing, just choose your favorite that complies with your dietary needs.
- Maple syrup. Honey is a great substitution, although I love the flavor of maple syrup in this recipe! You can also use granulated sugar, brown sugar, etc.
How do you make Cinnamon Apples?
Now let's walk through how to make these sautéed apples step-by-step! They're super easy but I like to make sure you know exactly how it's done to ensure your culinary success!
Cook apples in water
Start making these cinnamon apples by placing diced apples into a non-stick fry pan and add water. Cover and cook until the apples are slightly soft.
Add the rest of the ingredients
Add the maple syrup, vanilla, salt and cinnamon and stir until everything is evenly distributed. Cover and cook again, stirring occasionally.
Cook
Once the apples are soft, remove the lid and cook uncovered until all the ingredients caramelize onto the apples and they brown slightly.
Serve!
Transfer to a dish and serve the cinnamon apples warm! We like to serve them as a side dish, but they can also be used as a topping to your favorite breakfast foods! Here are some serving suggestions:
- Mix into overnight oats.
- Scoop on top of homemade waffles.
- Serve over a piece of warm french toast.
- Add more apple goodness to this apple cinnamon baked oatmeal (or this pumpkin baked oatmeal).
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Sautéed Cinnamon Apples
Ingredients
- 3 apples about 3 cups, chopped*
- 2 TBS water
- 1 TBS coconut oil**
- 1 TBS maple syrup***
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp sea salt
- ¼ tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Cut apples into same-sized pieces (about ½-1” cubes).
- Put apples pieces into a skillet with 2 TBS water. Cover the pan and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the apples become slightly soft and water is absorbed.
- Add 1 TBS of coconut oil to the skillet. Stir apples and oil together until all the apples are coated. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring every minute or so, until the apples become soft (you may need to cover them for the last 2 minutes).
- Add Maple syrup, cinnamon, salt and vanilla. Stir until well mixed.
- Cook for about 5 more minutes, stirring every minute until the apples reach your desired softness!
- Remove from heat and serve!
Video
Notes
- You can choose whether or not you peel your apples (if I'm feeding them to a baby without teeth I always peel them)!
- Butter can be substituted for coconut oil.
- Any sweetener you'd like can be substituted for the maple syrup. I have used honey and granulated sugar with excellent results.
Nutrition
One of the things I miss the most about fall in Illinois is going apple picking. We have yet to find a great orchard relatively close to us in Utah...and it totally bums me out! However we do have some amazing farmer's markets...so I can still buy farm-fresh apples - just without the fun experience of picking them ourselves. I especially love honey crisps, and I am SO not ready for their season to be drawing to an end!
If you love apple recipes then check out this Paleo Apple Cake too! YUM!
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Harley
Literally this is so great! We add coconut cool whip and only adds 20 calories and use sweet n low for our sweetener. Such a great dessert!
LaDonna
This is my go to healthy dessert! I've substituted the sugar for monk fruit. I will try dated one day with this recipe too. My kids love it!
Jess
So good! Paleo AND Vegan AND so good!!
Alex
So yummy! My family really enjoyed this recipe, thank you!
elisa
Can you make this ahead of time? If so, how long and how would you reheat? Thank you!