Baked Apple Slices
Updated Sep 19, 2026
Baked apple slices made with butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon until soft and tender. An easy topping for oatmeal, yogurt, pancakes, or ice cream.
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A super simple way I like to bake with apples is to literally just make Baked Apple Slices. It’s probably the apple recipe I make the most, even though it barely counts as a recipe. It’s just apple slices tossed with butter, brown sugar, and warm spices and baked until soft, but I use them on everything, so a batch never goes to waste. They land somewhere between a dessert and a topping, which is exactly why I keep making them.
Recipe testing notes
For the past 10 years, I’ve tested every recipe multiple times before sharing it! These notes give you a peek into my process of developing and testing.
I tested a few apple slice thicknesses, and a quarter inch worked best. When I cut them thinner, they cooked down into applesauce before the time was up, and thicker slices stayed firm in the middle. Keeping them even at about a quarter inch got them soft while still holding their shape, which is what I was after.
I also found tossing them halfway through really matters. The first time I left them alone the whole bake, the slices on top dried out while the ones sitting in the butter got soft faster. Stirring them once partway through got them cooking evenly.
Happy Cooking!
– Yumna
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Baked Apple Slices Ingredients
- Apples: I use Honeycrisp apples for this recipe, but any baking apple works, like Braeburn, Granny Smith, or Pink Lady. Choose firm apples so they hold their shape and don’t get mushy. Peel and core them, then cut into even ¼-inch slices so they cook evenly. Read my tips on how to cut an apple.
- Butter and brown sugar: I use unsalted butter so I can control the amount of salt in the recipe. If you use salted butter, you may need to reduce the amount of salt or skip it. You can substitute the brown sugar with honey, maple syrup, or white sugar.
- Spices and seasonings: Ground cinnamon, ground ginger, and salt. If you don’t have ground ginger, you can use nutmeg or cardamom, or just skip it.
How to Make Baked Apple Slices
These step-by-step photos walk you through how to make Baked Apple Slices. For the full ingredient list and detailed instructions, head to the recipe card below, or skip straight to the → Oven Baked Apple Slices recipe below
1. Melt the butter
Place the cubed butter in the baking dish and put it in the oven until it melts.
2. Stir in the sugar and spices
Remove the dish from the oven and stir the brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and salt into the melted butter until combined. Break up any clumps as you stir so you don’t get pockets of dry spice on the apples.
3. Coat the apples
Add the slices and toss, lifting from the bottom of the dish to spread the butter mixture over the apples.
4. Bake the apple slices
Bake, tossing halfway through to help them cook evenly. The baked apples are ready when the slices are soft but still hold their shape.
Full baked cinnamon apple slices recipe
Easy Baked Apple Slices Recipe
Ingredients
- ¼ cup unsalted butter cubed
- ½ cup dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ginger
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 6 medium apples about 2 ½ pounds, peeled and sliced into ¼-inch slices
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Place the butter in an 8×11-inch baking dish and set it in the oven for 5 minutes, until the butter melts.
- Remove the dish from the oven. Add the brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and salt, and toss to combine. Add the apples and toss again to evenly coat them with the butter mixture.
- Bake for 40 minutes, tossing halfway through, until the apples are soft, but retain their shape.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Recipe Variations
- Add orange zest: Stir 1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest into the butter mixture with the spices. Zest only the orange part of the peel, avoiding the bitter white pith.
- Mix in pears: Replace 2 of the apples with 2 medium firm pears, peeled, cored, and sliced ¼ inch thick. Avoid very ripe pears, which can fall apart during baking.
- Finish with nuts: Sprinkle chopped toasted pecans or toasted walnuts over the apples just before serving for some crunch.
Recipe Tips
- Toss the apple slices with lemon juice first. This keeps them from browning too quickly.
- Use your hands to coat well. You can use a spoon, but I find that using my hands lets me coat the apples better so the sauce sticks better and the apples caramelize nicely.
- Get extra caramelization. Switch to broil for the last 1–2 minutes to get more caramelization on the baked apples. Just watch them closely so they don’t burn!
- Spoon the sauce over top before serving. Some of the butter and brown sugar mixture settles underneath the apples, so scoop from the bottom when serving.
Serving Ideas
- With pancakes: Baked apple slices are so good on pancakes! Try them with my banana pancakes, oat flour pancakes, or pumpkin pancakes.
- With oatmeal: I love putting a few baked apple slices in my morning oatmeal in the fall. They’re so good in my baked peanut butter oatmeal, easy overnight oats, and protein oatmeal with bananas.
- With ice cream: Add baked apple slices to dessert! They’re so good in mason jar ice cream, banana nice cream, and no-churn ice cream.
Troubleshooting
The slices may be thicker than ¼ inch, or the apple variety may need a little longer to soften. Toss gently and continue baking, checking every 5 minutes until a fork slides easily into the slices.
Softer apple varieties can break down before the baking time is up. Thin slices also cook faster, so start checking early if yours are smaller than the recipe calls for. Once the apples are tender, take them out of the oven and handle them gently when serving.
Yes, but the peel will stay firmer than the flesh. For baked cinnamon apple slices that are soft all the way through, peel the apples first.
