Bourbon Caramel Apple Shortcakes {Appreciation Post}

Fluffy little shortcakes topped with sweet cinnamon cooked apples, whipped crea,. and bourbon caramel! Bourbon Caramel Apple Shortcakes are a rich, delicious way to celebrate the fall apple harvest, or to have a taste of autumn all year long!

Bourbon Caramel Apple Shortcakes

Today is special.

And not just because I made bourbon caramel.

Today I’m taking a minute to thank my staff.

Just kidding.

I don’t have any staff. But I do have another half that is in charge taste-testing and grocery hauling and occasionally an oddball construction project that I inevitably found on Pinterest and then insisted he engineer. He sharpens my knives and fixes all the things I break and bandaids my cuts because a sliced finger makes me have to put my head between my knees. Today I’m saying thanks to Chad for being supportive of Sugar Dish Me!

This is Chad just so you guys know he is actually a real life person. I think I refer to him pretty often here — and now you know that I did not make him up and also that he has dimples. For this Appreciation Post I asked Chad some questions — an interview!

What is your favorite blog called? “The only one I read is yours… every once in awhile. “
What is your favorite prop? “That you use? Um… I can’t think of what all you use. I’m not usually here when you are working on a blog post. Can this be multiple choice?”
What is the weirdest thing you have ever seen me do for a blog post? “Take everything in the kitchen out on the porch to get a photo. That’s pretty weird right?”
If you had your own blog what would you call it? “Chad’s Hot S*#%” (this answer has been censored.)
What do you do for a living & what are your favorite hobbies? “I’m a welder/fabricator. Eating and sleeping are my favorite hobbies.” Okay besides that because you have a lot of hobbies. ” Well I like riding the rail buggy when it’s not tore up. And flying my helicopter.” (It’s radio controlled, people. We do not have an actual helicopter.)
Who does the dishes? “You do.” (He’s talking about me)
When was the last time you did the dishes? “I washed the dishes the last time I got yelled at… months. It’s been months. I’m not allowed in the kitchen. I’ve been told to stay away.”

Caramel Apple Shortcake Recipe

So I made Chad these Bourbon Caramel Apple Shortcakes to say thanks for staying out of the kitchen, and for giving me opinions on recipes, and for being in charge of the Mickey Mouse bandaids. Also it happened to be our anniversary when I served these up so I should maybe say thanks for that too.

Bourbon Caramel is a great way to say thank you!!! I took homemade little shortcakes and covered them in cooked cinnamon apples, topped them with fresh whipped cream, and drizzled bourbon caramel over all of it. I pretty much wish I had more of all this stuff.

Bourbon Caramel Apple Shortcake Recipe

5.0 from 4 reviews

Bourbon Caramel Apple Shortcakes {Appreciation Post}

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

40 mins

Author: Heather Tullos

Serves: 6

Ingredients

Shortcakes:
2 cups flour
3 tablespoons sugar, plus more for sprinkling
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup cold butter
1 egg, plus one lightly beaten egg white (for brushing the shortcakes)
½ cup + 2 tablespoons fat free buttermilk
Apple Topping:
4 cups chopped apples
¼ cup packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon bourbon
Bourbon Caramel:
½ cup water
¼ cup granulated sugar
1-2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon bourbon whiskey
Fresh Whipped Cream:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2-3 tablespoons powdered sugar (depending on how sweet you like it)

Instructions

Pre-heat the oven to 425.
In a large bowl whisk together the flour, 3 tablespoons of sugar, baking powder, and salt.
Using a box grater, grate the cold butter into the bowl and then mix with your fingers until coarse crumbles form.
In a small dish (I like to use my liquid measuring cup), lightly beat together the egg and the buttermilk. Add it to the bowl and stir/fold with a sturdy spatula until just combined (Careful not to overwork the dough! That will make your shortcakes tough instead of tender.).
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and gently knead it into a ball. Pat the ball out to about ¾” thick. Cut the dough using a small biscuit cutter (OR whatever you have handy). The size is really your preference but larger will change the bake time. Pictured here are 3" circles. Place your shortcake cut-outs onto an ungreased baking sheet about an inch apart (just crowd ‘em on there- they don’t spread out much).
Brush the tops of the shortcakes with the beaten egg white and then sprinkle with sugar.
Bake for about 10 minutes (more for larger shortcakes) - the bottoms will lightly brown and the tops will be golden from the egg wash. Remove them from the baking sheet, and let them cool completely (I ended up with about 15 shortcakes).
To make the apple topping add the chopped apples, brown sugar, cinnamon, lemon juice, and bourbon to a medium saucepan. Stir the mixture and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until apples are softened but not mushy - about 13 minutes.
To make the bourbon caramel, pour the water in a small saucepan. Add the sugar in a little pile right in the center of the pan. Turn the heat up to medium high, cover and simmer (this will only take about 30 seconds). Remove the lid and let it continue to simmer for about 12 minutes. Sometimes it takes longer. You are looking for that pretty amber caramel color. Place the pan in the sink, add a tablespoon of the cream and stir it in. It will bubble and sizzle. Keep stirring until it's smooth. Stir in the vanilla and bourbon. If it seems too thick add more cream. You want it to still be sort of saucy as it cools (but I serve this caramel warm because it is DELICIOUS.).
To make fresh whipped cream, beat the heavy cream and powdered sugar together using the whisk attachment on a stand or hand mixer until stiff peaks form.
To assemble the shortcakes, place 1-2 shortcakes on each plate. Top with the apple mixture. add whipped cream. Drizzle with the bourbon caramel. Serve!

Notes

If you need to do this quickly, store-bought shortcakes will eliminate steps 1-7 and you can always buy whipped cream instead of making your own. Homemade Apple pie topping and bourbon caramel are the crucial elements to this recipe so don't skimp there! Those two steps on the stove will only take you about 20 minutes.

Oh! And one more fun thing! The idea for this post came from Amanda at i am baker. She wanted to write a post about her husband and thought it would be super fun to include Appreciation Posts from other bloggers too! So here is a list of amazing treats made by some of the most talented people I have ever come across and some words/photos of their significant others. I hear one even made a video. I’ll be reading every single one of these today 1) because I want to see all the delicious food and 2) because I am feeling super nosy. See you there!

Lauren from Keep It Sweet Desserts made M&M Kit Kat Cake

Rachel from Rachel Cooks made Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies

Shanna from Pineapple & Coconut made Best Ever Chicken Enchiladas

Meaghan from The Decorated Cookie made Homemade SpaghettiOs

Amy from Very Culinary shared a Fabulous Video!

Liz from The Lemon Bowl made Lebanese Meat Pies (Sfeehas)

Cassie from Bake Your Day wrote The Guy Across the Table

Erin from The Law Students Wife made Chicken Stir Fry with Thai Peanut Sauce

Heather from Sugar Dish Me made Bourbon Apple Shortcakes

Dorothy from Crazy For Crust made Pretzel Toffee Peanut Butter Cookies

Lauren from Climbing Grier Mountain shared At the Table with Mr. B

Tanya from Lemons for Lulu made Reese’s Peanut Butter Caramel Bars