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By Kara Lydon - - Updated
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Less than 10 minutes to prep these slow cooker baked apples! Your slow cooker does all the work and all you have to worry about is enjoying this delicious fall (or holiday!) treat. Easy to make gluten-free too!
Dessert that cooks itself? YES, PLEASE.
If you love fall flavors and warm apple desserts, these slow cooker baked apples are calling your name!
They only require 10 minutes of prep time and once in the slow cooker, you can set it and forget it.
An easy substitute for when you’re craving apple pie or apple crisp but don’t want all the hassle.
Warm, soft apple on the outside, sweet crumb topping on the inside.The best way to enjoy them? Served warm à la mode, DUH.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Notes on Ingredients
Flour: I used all-purpose but you could use whole-wheat or gluten-free all purpose if you’d prefer!
Apples: I like cortland best for this recipe but honeycrisp or any variety suitable for baking will work well!
How to Make Slow Cooker Baked Apples
The prep for this recipe couldn’t be easier! You start by mixing together your dry ingredients (flour, oats, sugars, cinnamon, salt).
Then you core your apples, leaving a nice sizable hole in the middle.
Using a spoon and your fingers, you’ll pack the hole with your oat mixture, packing some on top of the apple too.
Place the filled apples in the slow cooker. Pour in 1/2 cup water (to help cook) and place a pat of butter on top of each apple (to make that crumb topping nice and buttery).
Set on low for four hours or high for two hours and you’ve got dessert!
Expert tip: Core the apples leaving 1/4 inch at the bottom to fill. Or, core the entire middle and add the oat mixture while the apples are on a hard surface. You’ll then use your fingers to pack the flour mixture down, adding more, and packing down, until you can’t fill them anymore.
Slow Cooker Apple FAQs
What size slow cooker do you use?
I have a 7 quart Crockpot which easily fit 5 apples. If you have a smaller slow cooker, you may have to use less apples or pack them in tightly.
What variety of apples work best?
I love using cortlands for baking but other varieties for baking like jonagold, honeycrisp, braeburns, and pink lady would work well!
Is this recipe gluten-free?
You can easily make it gluten free by substituting gluten-free flour for the all-purpose flour.
Is this recipe vegan?
You can easily make it vegan by using a plant-based butter spread.
What should you serve this with?
I love serving them warm with vanilla ice cream and this salted caramel sauce. They’re also delicious with some Greek yogurt for breakfast 🙂
For more apple and fall inspiration, check out my recipes below!
- Apple Baked Oatmeal
- No Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Salted Caramel Peanut Butter Apple Dip
- Gluten Free Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Instant Pot Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
If you like this recipe,please be sure to give it a 5 star rating below. If you make it, share it on instagram andtag me @karalydonrdand I’ll re-share it with my followers! If you want to save this recipe for later, be sure topin it on Pinterest!
Slow Cooker Baked Apples
(6 votes, average: 4.17 out of 5)
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- Author: Kara @ The Foodie Dietitian
- Total Time: 4 hours 10 minutes
- Yield: 5 apples 1x
Description
Less than 10 minutes to prep these slow cooker baked apples! Your slow cooker does all the work and all you have to worry about is enjoying this delicious fall (or holiday!) treat. Easy to make gluten-free too!
Ingredients
Scale
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 5 tablespoons butter, divided
- 5 medium-large apples (I used Cortland)
- 1/2 cup water
- Optional toppings: vanilla ice cream, salted caramel sauce
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, add oats, flour, brown sugar, sugar, cinnamon and salt. Stir to combine.
- Core apples using an apple corer or sharp knife. Slice off the top of the apple so that the top is even.
- Stuff the empty apple cavity with the oats mixture, pressing down firmly to pack in. Cover the top of the apple with additional oat mixture.
- Add water to the crockpot and carefully place apples in so that they are standing upright. Add a tablespoon of butter on top of each apple. Cook on low for 4-5 hours or high for 2 – 2 1/2 hours. Remove from the crockpot and let cool for 5-10 minutes.
- Optional: Top with ice cream and/or salted caramel sauce.
Notes
- Core apples so that you leave 1/4 inch apple at the bottom to easily pack in oat mixture. Or, you can core out the middle so you can see through the apple. Then with the apple on a hard surface, add oat mixture and press down firmly with fingers to pack it in. Continue to add more, packing down firmly, until you can’t add anymore.
- Recipe can easily be made gluten-free and/or vegan by substituting gluten-free flour and plant-based butter spread.
- You can use any apple variety fit for baking such as cortland, jonagold, honeycrisp, braeburn, or pink lady.
- If you like extra soft/tender apples, cook on high for four hours or on low for six hours.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 4 hours
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: Fall
This recipe was retested, reshot, and revamped to give you the most delicious (and beautiful!) recipe. The original recipe was published November 2014.
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66 Comments
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Jessica
I can’t wait to try this! I just want to add to make it gluten free yes the flour needs to be gluten free but so do the oats. I think my family is going to love this!
November 13, 2022
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Kara Lydon
You are right, thank you! Hope you enjoy it!
November 14, 2022
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Terrific! I’ve made it several times. I double the recipe and snack on it for a few days in a row.
March 27, 2022
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Kara Lydon
Thank you! What a delish snack to have on hand.
April 1, 2022
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JoyJoy
Really good! I made them according to the directions. I used 8 Jazz apples in a large size crockpot. I kept the mixture the same. I didn’t double the recipe for the mixture and they were plenty sweet. The only thing is I added more water. Instead of the 1/2 cup I added about 3/4 cup because I was using the larger crockpot and more apples. After on low for about 2 hours I added more water because it sounded like it was frying. I let it go another 4 hours because I like them nice and soft. It was a success!! They are a little putsy to make with the coring of the apples and such but so worth it. Oh, and another thing, I put the extra mixture in the bottom of the crockpot along with dried cranberries, raisins and walnuts. Maybe that’s why I needed to add more water to the bottom. All and all really good.
October 20, 2021
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Kara Lydon
Yum!! Thank you so much for including all the detail on how you prepared this recipe – I’m sure it will help others if they experience the same problem. Depending on the apple type and crockpot, more water could be needed, especially if you add any other ingredients. And, as you said, it’s about preference, too! Sounds delicious 🙂
October 26, 2021
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Joy
Looks great. Do you think I could add more apples on top of each other (leaving the tops exposed)? If so I would make extra topping of course. But then I am thinking they would take longer by about an hour. Thoughts?
October 18, 2021
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Kara Lydon
Good question! I haven’t tried it, but it would definitely take longer given you’re adding more ingredients. You would likely also need to add more water, start with 1/4 cup and go from there. As long as you leave the apple tops exposed, you should still get that crispy, sweet topping. Let me know if you try it out, I’m interested to know!
October 26, 2021
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Joyce A Duecker
We were so disappointed with these. It took almost 6 hours on low for the honeycrisp apples to get cooked, and the stuffing was as dry when we served them as when we put it into the apples. Did we miss a step? Was there a liquid to be added to the stuffing that wasn’t in the recipe?
November 26, 2020
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Kara Lydon
I’m so sorry to hear that, Joyce. You didn’t miss a step – the pads of butter on top help to moisten the dry ingredients. If it was too dry for your liking, you could melt the butter ahead of time and mix it in with the dry mixture before stuffing it into the apples. As for the cooking time, I will adjust the range based on your feedback.
December 1, 2020
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This is 5 stars recipe. Simple ingredients and easy to collect, just one thing, can we use brown sugar for all or sugar is required? I prefer to put yogurt on this apple, it is suitable for delicate of apple.
October 10, 2020
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Kara Lydon
Hi Ethan! Thanks – glad you like it! You could use all brown sugar if you’d prefer.
October 13, 2020
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Wow this looks amazing! I especially love the idea of salted caramel sauce and a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. So glad it’s finally fall!
October 1, 2020
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Kara Lydon
I’m happy about fall too. 🙂 Let me know if you try these slow cooker apples!
October 5, 2020
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Belinda
Yummy! I tried this last night, in my little
1 1/2 quart slow cooker, that fit one large Honeycrisp apple. I am living out of a hotel for work for about 2 months and I really miss cooking! I’d like to add that since I am living in the hotel the mini fridge is a challenge, this lovely fresh apple became frozen solid and I didn’t want to throw it away, this recipe was perfect! It made my room more homey by the cinnamon apple aroma and WOW was it delicious! I left out the white sugar and added Pecans, Coconut and Dried Cranberries. Thank you so much for this recipe!!!June 11, 2018
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Kara @ The Foodie Dietitian
You’re so welcome, Belinda! I’m glad it made your room more homey and put that frozen apple to good use!
June 29, 2018
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Ruth Portway
Hi Belinda, I read this recipe of Kara’s and have prepared it ready to cook this evening. I have left out the sugar because my husband is diabetic and I really don’t need any added sugar in my diet either. I was wondering what else I could have put in and I like your idea of pecans and cranberries but personally coconut does not suit me – I think it is one of the triggers for my vertiginous migraines – but that that’s just a personal issue. I think I will try to get some pecans and cranberries and either make a topping for tonight or use them the next time I use Kara’s recipe. Thanks for the idea and good luck with other meals in your slow cooker. I ‘ve only just got mine, which is 1.5 litres, but have done some super casseroles – yesterday was lamb with black eye beans, onion, celery, carrot, swede (turnip), stock and it was delicious.
January 17, 2019
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Kara @ The Foodie Dietitian
Thanks for sharing, Ruth! Hope you enjoyed!
July 19, 2019
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Kristi
Nutrition facts please!?!
November 1, 2017
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Kara @ The Foodie Dietitian
Hi Kristi, I don’t provide the nutrition facts for my recipes because of my nutrition philosophy which you can read more about here: https://karalydon.b.wpstage.net/about/
November 9, 2017
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This is one of my most favorite ways to eat dessert without feeling any sense of guilt! Not to mention it can be so nutritious!!
November 6, 2016
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Kara @ The Foodie Dietitian
Totally! Thanks, Rebecca.
November 11, 2016
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Aimee
Hi, I just made these and the Crock-Pot is filling the house with a wonderful smell. I used apple cider in the bottom instead of water. I hope it won’t stick since the pot is on low and only for two hours. Looking forward to eating them later!!
November 5, 2016
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Kara @ The Foodie Dietitian
Yes! I love the aroma that fills the house when you make this recipe! You can always add more apple cider if it gets absorbed. Let me know how they turned out!
November 11, 2016
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Sara @sarahaasrdn.com
What a fun idea! I love this Kara! And I too, love my crock pot! Great post!
November 4, 2016
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Kara @ The Foodie Dietitian
Thanks, Sara! I don’t know what I would do without mine!
November 11, 2016
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OMG that oat topping sounds amazing!! These look so delicious, even better than an actual apple crisp in my opinion 🙂
November 4, 2016
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Kara @ The Foodie Dietitian
Thanks, Kelli! I can’t get enough of apple desserts in the fall.
November 11, 2016
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Shelly
I make all different types of baked apples and always looking for a new recipe. Yours will be tried today! It looks amazing.
For people who have questions about coring, I find a melon baller works better than a corer. The corer goes all the way through where the baller gives you a nice diameter and you can stop a quarter of an inch a way from the bottom.Thanks for the great recipe.
November 7, 2015
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Kara @ The Foodie Dietitian
Thanks, Shelly! Let me know how it turns out – I hope you enjoy it!
& thanks for the tips on coring!
November 9, 2015
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Burnseeds
Ok, I have never cooked an apple so forgive me for sounding pinheaded. When you say core it does that mean just the center or more than that to fit more filling in them? Thank you and they look awesome!
October 12, 2015
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Kara @ The Foodie Dietitian
Hi there – coring means removing the center of the apple (the seeds and core). For these, I would do a generous core to leave ample room for the filling 🙂 Enjoy!
October 13, 2015
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Wow Kara! Just the photo alone makes me know I want to make these!Good thing I have a crockpot up here in grad school 😉
xo
September 30, 2015
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Kara @ The Foodie Dietitian
Yes!! Time to bust out the crockpot 🙂
October 9, 2015
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Jean
The butter gets mixed in with the oat mixture, correct? I’ve read the recipe several times, but I can’t find that bit in the instructions.
The recipe sounds delicious. I’m allergic to raw apples and pears, but I can eat them cooked with no problem. Definitely want to try these!
November 12, 2014
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Kara @ The Foodie Dietitian
So sorry, Jean. Thanks for bringing this omission to my attention! You actually want to place a tbsp of butter on top of each apple once they are positioned in the slow cooker. I’ve updated the recipe now so this is clear.
Glad to hear you can have cooked apples and pears with no reaction! Enjoy the recipe and let me know what you think!
November 13, 2014
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Okay, I just have to follow-up and tell you my husband and I made these on Saturday night, and we were in heaven! My husband has now requested that this be his dessert for the rest of fall and winter. Thanks for sharing!!!
November 10, 2014
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These look absolutely amazing!!! I’m sure they don’t “need” those optional toppings, but how can you resist vanilla ice cream and salted caramel sauce?!?!
November 5, 2014
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Kara Lydon, RD
Thanks, Sonali!! I had one today for an afternoon snack sans the “extras”. It was perfect without them. But, hey, if I’m gonna do dessert, I’m gonna do it right ;).
November 5, 2014
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Gorgeous and looks so delish! My family is apple crazy and loves cinnamon – may have to try this on them.
November 4, 2014
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Kara Lydon, RD
Anyone who’s apple crazy is a friend of mine! 🙂 Thanks, Julie!
November 5, 2014
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Every time I see a recipe like this I kick myself for giving away my slow cooker. I’m going out to get another one tomorrow just so I can make this 🙂
November 4, 2014
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Kara Lydon, RD
Noooooo. That’s the saddest thing I’ve heard all day, Anne. Bring back the slow cooker!! 🙂
November 5, 2014
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These baked apples sound delicious! I love cooked apples. Excited to make these!
November 4, 2014
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Kara Lydon, RD
Yay! Thanks, Genevieve! Let me know how they turn out 🙂
November 5, 2014
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Kara Lydon, RD
Thanks, Regan!! xo
November 5, 2014
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The wonders of the things you can make in a slow cooker never end 😉
November 4, 2014
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Kara Lydon, RD
Haha I’m starting to believe that anything is possible in a slow cooker. 🙂
November 5, 2014
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Kara Lydon, RD
Thanks so much, Natalie!
November 5, 2014
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Kara Lydon, RD
Haha thanks, Whitney!
November 5, 2014
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Oh my goodness, those look AMAZING! I am right there with you on the crock pot–I love using it but have realized lately that I don’t have many recipes for it. I will definitely be trying this and adding it to my list.
November 4, 2014
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Kara Lydon, RD
Thanks so much, Melanie! I have a feeling our crockpots are going to get a lot of love this winter 🙂
November 5, 2014
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That looks amazing! Since I haven’t joined the slow cooker bandwagon yet, I’ll have to make these the old-fashioned way!
November 4, 2014
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Francesca
I have so many apples I don’t know what to do with…So now there’s this. Thanks!!
November 4, 2014
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Those are gorgeous. I adore just-picked apples here in New England. I can’t wait to try this! Pinning now 🙂
November 4, 2014
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I can’t figure out whether they look more beautiful or delicious! Regardless, they are both! Totally making these, once I get a crock-pot.
November 4, 2014
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YUM! Oh my gosh, those baked apples with a dollop of ice cream on it looks FANTASTIC! Need to try this with some of my farmers market apples!
November 4, 2014
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Oooo 🙂 These sound amazing. I’ve been needing to find new dessert recipes that aren’t mainly processed sugar and flour!
November 4, 2014
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Kara Lydon, RD
Thanks, Emily! They can be hard to come by, eh? Enjoy 🙂
November 5, 2014
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These apples are drool worthy. I also tend to gravitate towards the fruit desserts vs. chocolate. And that ice cream on top? So much yes!
November 4, 2014
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Kara Lydon, RD
Thanks, Alanna! I mean, the ice cream is pretty necessary IMO. That contrast between warm and cold? YES.
November 5, 2014
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These are beautiful, and what an easy dessert for Thanksgiving! I love using the slow cooker.
November 4, 2014
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Kara Lydon, RD
Thanks, Kelly! Me too – can’t get enough of it this time of year.
November 5, 2014
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