Caramel Apple Dumplings - cooking recipe

Ingredients

Caramel Sauce
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 tablespoons rum (optional)
chopped nuts (optional)
Dumplings
4 medium baking apples (Granny Smith or Golden Delicious apples are good choices.)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 sheet frozen puff pastry (17.3oz pkg)
1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional) or 1/2 cup walnuts (optional)
1 large egg, beaten with
1 teaspoon water

Preparation

Make Caramel Sauce.
Peel apples, core each, creating a 1\" wide hollow from top to bottom.
Place apples in a bowl and coat with lemon juice.
On a lightly floured board, roll pastry into a 12\" square.
Cut into four equal squares and center an apple upright on each.
Pour Caramel Sauce equally into apple hollows.
Add chopped nuts at this time, if using.
Brush egg/water mixture over 1/2\" wide border around each pastry.
To wrap each dumpling, with floured finger bring two opposite pastry corners up over apple and pinch tips together. Repeat with remaining two corners.
Firmly pinch all tips together; pinch each seam, then fold over about 1/8\" along the seam and pinch again, leaving no holes.
Space evenly on a buttered 12x15\" baking sheet.
Bake at 375F for 20 minutes.
Bake until pastry is deep golden, 10-15 minutes longer.
With a wide spatula, transfer the dumplings to plates.
Accompany with remaining caramel sauce and ice cream, if desired.
Caramel Sauce:
In a 2-3 quart pan over medium heat, tilt and swirl sugar often until melted and amber-colored. About 5-7 minutes.
Stir in whipping cream; mixture will bubble and sugar will harden.
Stir until sugar melts again and sauce boils, 6-8 minutes.
At once, pour sauce into a bowl.
Stir in vanilla.
Let sauce cool for 10 minutes, then stir in the rum.
Serve warm or cool.