Grilled Apples for Sides or Dessert

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Grilled apples are super versatile and easy. Serve them unadorned as a simple side dish, or topped with a cinnamon glaze and ice cream for dessert. Crunchy granola turns them into a unique brunch dish that will bring on the compliments.

Grilled apples are perfect in the fall

The weather is beautiful in the fall and we are cooking outdoors at least as much as we do in the summer. Our grills are going strong with burgers and wings for tailgate parties, ham on the Big Green Egg for the holidays, and pork tenderloin for any day of the week.

While you’ve got that meat and skillet potatoes on one side of the grill why not add some apples? It’s apple season after all, and they’re ripe, beautiful and abundant.

We make these grilled apples very similar to our grilled peaches, which are a summer favorite, of course.

The best apples for grilling?

Choose any firm apple that you would use in a pie or any other type of recipe where they get cooked, but need to hold their shape. Our go-to cooking apple is the Granny Smith variety. They hold up well and have a tart taste that is balanced perfectly by some brown sugar and cinnamon.

Jonathon apples, Braeburn or Honeycrisp would all be excellent choices as well.

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How to prepare apples for grilling

Naturally you’ll want to thoroughly wash the apples. Then I like to slice them in about 1/2 inch slices. You should get about 4 slices out of a good sized apple.

As you slice toss them in a shallow baking dish that you’ve added water and lemon juice to. About 3 Tablespoons of lemon juice is good for a pan of water. This will prevent the sliced apples from browning.

Then take them out and core each slice. Drop back into the lemon water until ready to cook.

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This is the type of apple corer I use and you can order one here. You could core the whole apple before slicing, but I think it’s easier to do them a slice at the time.

Right before grilling brush the slices with a little oil. Use an oil that tolerates higher heat without burning, like pecan oil or canola oil. This is especially important if your grill is pretty hot for something you’ll cook fast like burgers.

Now get creative according to how you want to serve them

If the apples will be a side dish (perfect with pork or chicken) they really need absolutely nothing.

We’ve given you a simple brown sugar, butter and cinnamon recipe that can be brushed on when they’re almost done. It’s perfect if your grilled apples will become dessert. Make them even better by topping with some good quality vanilla ice cream.

You can go with or without the cinnamon mixture if your plan revolves around breakfast or brunch. Again, they would be amazing without anything added, but a crunchy granola sprinkle is an idea everyone will love.

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