This Apple Slump with Vanilla-Cayenne Caramel is a perfect post-orchard recipe to use up all of your apples this fall season, this slump is packed with fresh apples and an incredibly delicious, slightly spicy vanilla-cayenne caramel. The dumplings are a simple, soft batter that gets spooned over top of the apple-caramel mixture and then you simply place the lid on your pan and everything cooks right on the stovetop – no baking necessary. This one is a My Kitchen Little classic, as I’ve made it for years and just love the ease of preparation here.

Table of Contents

It’s tough to beat and you can read on to learn a little more about the world of Slumps. Or simply jump right ahead to the recipe.

There is a chapter in my cookbook, Smoke, Roots, Mountain, Harvest where I spill the tea on all things fruit dessert – we’re talking cobblers, crisps, buckles and betties. I include a simple recipe for each, using blackberries as my muse, and I did this with the intention of illuminating not only what the difference is between each of these baked treats, but also to show how such simple preparations can transform a humble piece of fruit into something exceptionally delicious. It doesn’t take much, and that is such a beautiful thing.

Our apple slump today is also a member of this club. Not only is the name charming, the preparation is unique and oh so very casual. I think you’ll find the recipe is a fun one as well.

What is a Slump?

I thought you’d never ask! Okay, a slump is yet another simple, straightforward cooked fruit dessert, but unlike its cobbler and crisp cousins, it does no time in the oven whatsoever. Nope, it may look like it baked away, what with those pillowy looking biscuits, but this treat comes together from start to finish right on your stovetop. It gets its name from the “slumping down” of the fruit as you cook it. In our recipe here, you essentially wait for the apples to slump down in the pan before adding in the caramel and the biscuit topping.

But wait, there’s more!

One of the best things about this recipe is the fact that, in no more than 10 ingredients, we’re creating a delicious fruit dessert AND a caramel (from scratch). I can promise you that this will become your new favorite caramel and it is absolutely foolproof. I’ve been making it for about 10 years now and am so happy to share it with you here. It’s a truly essential recipe to have in your back pocket, and it honestly needs little more than some vanilla ice cream to show itself off, but come apple season, I like to flex its powers a little more. By stirring this vanilla-laced, slightly spicy caramel into the slumped apples, we’ll create a depth of flavor and a sweetness that is just so lovely.

This is slump 2.0. This slump trumps all others. Slump for president! Ahem.