Campfire Baked Apples

These sugar free baked apples are easy to make while on a camping trip. Wrap them in foil and cook in the hot coals of your campfire, bake in a cast iron Dutch oven, or bake them at home in your own kitchen! I include directions to bake them using any of these three methods. Love the Dutch oven? Check out all of my cast iron campfire Dutch oven recipes.

This past weekend My family and I went camping and white water rafting with my neighbors. We had about six families which included 17 kids!! There were no showers at our campsite, but we had the river!

Kern River runs about 165 miles and is fed by the snowmelt near Mount Whitney. So the cold water felt oh, so good, in those 100ºF plus temperatures we were having. We got some river rafting fun in as well as just good old fashioned jumping in the river fun!

We divided meal duties amongst the families and I was for dinner the first night. I made campfire chili with a cornbread crust in a dutch oven. It went over very well with the hungry campers and no one left hungry!

Why this recipe is so awesome

While the kids had s’mores for dessert, I made something sugar free that was naturally sweet and a bit more sophisticated for the grown-ups: campfire baked apples. So easy, and really delicious!

While the chili was cooking, my friends and I cored out enough apples for all of us. I think we made about 16 total for 10 adults & 15 kids. I figured most of the kids preferred the marshmallow treats over my healthy baked apples!

This is such an easy dessert to make. Simply core the apples, stuff them with a nut-raisin filling and top with a little butter. You wrap them in foil and bake them in your fire ring full of hot ash.

I have also made these outdoors using hot coals and my cast iron Dutch oven. AND I have baked apples at home in my kitchen, too. Like I said crazy easy.

When cooking over campfire, we knew the apples were done when we squeezed them with some long handled tongs. It they were a little soft, but not mushy, they were done.

And, boy, were they devoured!! The older kids, who were sick of s’mores, enjoyed the apples, too. It was like a personal apple pie, only healthier and tastier. The apples still had some tartness to them, but the nut filling added just enough sweetness.

Ingredients you need

This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience (which means if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission but it won’t cost you a penny more)!  Read my full disclosure policy

• Apples: Use firm baking apples like Gala or Granny Smith.
• Lemon juice: This is optional, but it helps the cored apples from browning and oxidizing. You can use bottled or fresh lemon juice.
• Dried fruits: I used dried cranberries and raisins, but you can use any dried fruit your family likes. If using larger items like dried apricots, cut them into small pieces first.
• Nuts: I used chopped walnuts, but you can also use peanuts, almonds, cashews, pecans or whatever nuts you like.
• Spices: Ground cinnamon and nutmeg.
• Butter: A small dab of butter is added to the apples for flavor and moisture. For a vegan option you can use vegan butter or coconut oil. For more sweetness and a square of caramel.

Tools to Use

• Dutch Oven
• Lid Lifter
• Chimney Starter

SHOP NOW

Step-by-step directions

1. In a small bowl, mix together dried fruits, nuts and spices. Larger apples will use more filling than smaller apples.

2. Using a knife of an apple corer carefully core the apples. Brush the inside of the apples with lemon juice to prevent browning. This is more important if you are making a large batch and the cored apples will be sitting out for a period of time.

3. If you are baking the apples in a campfire, place each apple on their own a 10-inch square sheet of aluminum foil. Heavy duty foil works best. Press the dried fruit mixture into the center of each cored apple and top with a small piece of butter and wrap each apple tightly with the aluminum foil.

4. If baking in a Dutch oven, place cored apples snugly in the pot, fill with nut mixture and top with butter. My 10-inch Dutch oven fits 8 large apples beautifully. If you have extra nut filling, you can scatter it over and around the apples.

5. If baking at home, place the cored apples in an oven safe baking dish, fill with nut mixture and top butter. If you have extra nut filling, you can scatter it over and around the apples.

6. To cook the apples in the campfire, place the foil wrapped apples in or next to hot coals, NOT onto open flame. Cook this way for 20-45 minutes, depending on how firm you like your baked apples.

Keep checking your apples. If coals are too hot, remove from coals and place on a grate over the coals. Apples are done when they feel tender when squeezed. Serve warm.

7. To bake apples in a Dutch oven, once everything is assembled cover your pot and place 8 hot coals underneath the Dutch oven and 14 coals on top for a 10-inch Dutch oven. This is approximately 350ºF. Bake them for about 20 minutes until the apples are just softening, but still firm. If you like your apples softer, cook them in the hot Dutch oven for 10-15 minutes more.

8. To bake apples at home, bake in the oven at 350ºF for 25-45 minutes, depending on how firm you like your apples. The apples below were baked for 45 minutes.

Recipe tips and FAQs

If you are camping, you can mix up the nut filling at home and keep it in a resealable bag. This means less work at the campsite.

You can also wrap a square sheet of parchment paper around the apples then cover that with foil. This way the food doesn’t touch the foil, and the parchment paper doesn’t burn in the ashes.

Serve these apples warm or let them cool off first. You can serve them as is or top with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

And if you are looking for more fabulous recipes to enjoy while you are camping or simply cooking in your backyard, then I’ve got a treat for you! This recipe is also featured in my new cookbook, The Camp & Cabin Cookbook (Countryman Press 2018).

I have 100 recipes that are all prepared outdoors and over fire using multiple techniques from foil cooking to ash cooking to Dutch oven cooking and grilling and so much more!

Learn more about my camping cookbook here.

Continue to Content

Yield: serves 4

Campfire Baked Apples

Print

These sugar free baked apples are easy to make while on a camping trip. Wrap them in foil and cook in the hot coals of your campfire, bake in a cast iron Dutch oven, or bake them at home in your own kitchen! I include directions to bake them using any of these three methods.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Ingredients

• 4 large apples, such as Gala or Granny Smith
• 1 TBS lemon juice, optional
• ¼ cup dried cranberries
• 2 TBS raisins
• 2 TBS chopped walnuts
• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 TBS unsalted butter

Instructions

1. Using a knife of an apple corer carefully core the apples. Brush the inside of the apples with lemon juice to prevent browning. This is optional.
2. Place each apple on their own a 10-inch square sheet of aluminum foil.
3. In a small bowl, mix together dried fruits, nuts and spices. Press dried fruit mixture into the center of each cored apple.
4. Cut butter into four pieces and place each small square on top of each apple, over the center filled with the dried fruit mixture.
5. Wrap each apple tightly with the aluminum foil.
6. Place aluminum foil wrapped apples in or next to hot coals, not onto open flame, and cook for 20-45 minutes, depending on how firm you like your baked apples.
7. Keep checking your apples. If coals are too hot, remove from coals and place on a grate over the coals. Apples are done when they feel tender when squeezed. Serve warm.

Notes

To bake in the Dutch oven outdoors, double the recipe to make 8 baked apples for a 10-inch Dutch oven. Bake for 20-45 minutes with 8 hot coals underneath and 14 hot coals on top of the Dutch oven.

To bake at home, baked stuffed apples in an oven safe baking dish at 350ºF for 20-45 minutes, depending on how firm you like your baked apples.

You can also use any variety of dried fruits and nuts that you like. If using larger dried fruits, like apricots, cut into smaller pieces before stuffing into the apples.

If you don't like cooking with foil, place a piece of parchment paper over the foil and have your parchment touching your apples when you wrap them all up.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1 apple
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 253Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 8mgSodium: 5mgCarbohydrates: 53gFiber: 8gSugar: 41gProtein: 2g

PS If you try this recipe, why not leave a star rating in the recipe card right below and/or a review in the comment section further down the page? I always appreciate your feedback.

You can also follow me on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram. Sign up for my eMail list, too!