Apple picking is one of the best past times of the fall season. It’s a fun activity to do with family and friends with the added benefit of getting yummy, fresh apples. Often you end up picking too many and have no idea how you’re going to eat them all. Recipes using apples help you get rid of some, but there are so many other uses for apples! We've put together a list of your favorite apple crafts, apple recipes, and other uses of apples.

 
  

This simple apple recipe is easy and has a fun secret ingredient.

Wrap each apple slice in a triangle of crescent dough and place in a greased casserole dish. Melt the butter, sugars and vanilla in a saucepan and bring to a boil.  Drizzle the butter mixture over the dumplings and spread so they’re covered completely. Pour the mountain dew into the corners of the pan so that the whole bottom is covered. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

Everyone loves a caramel apple, but they’re often too big and messy to enjoy. Cut apples into slices, put each slice on a skewer, and dip it into caramel for a yummy treat! Invite friends over for a Caramel Apple Bar gathering with this cute online invitation so others can partake too! Set up bowls of mini chocolate chips, marshmallows, nuts, granola, and chocolate cookie crumbles so guests can add fun toppings to their caramel apple slices. 

 

Core an apple and cut into thin slices so you have apple rings. Dip in your favorite pancake batter and cook on medium heat in a skillet, sprinkling both sides with cinnamon sugar. This is an easy and delicious treat for fall mornings.
 

Serve your cider in cups made of apples. Cut the top of an apple and then hollow out the inside with a melon baller or carefully with a knife. Serve homemade or store bought apple cider in the apples and you can eat the apple shell when you’re done drinking.

 

Switch up your usual apple pie recipe by baking mini pies inside of the apples. Cut the top off of the apples and hollow them out with a knife or melon baller.  Fill with your favorite apple pie filling and top with pie crust dough in a classic weaved pattern. Bake in a casserole dish with just enough water in it to cover the bottom and cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 20 minutes at 375 degrees, uncover, and bake for another 20 minutes. Bonus - this recipe uses less pie crust so it's much healthier!
 

Place the apples cut side up on a foil covered cookie sheet. Mix the rest of the ingredients and divide between the apples, spreading on top, and filling the cored hole. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

 

This is a fun apple craft to do with kids, and you get to watch all the birds snack away. Cut an apple in half, or into smaller slices. Coat the cut sides in a layer of peanut butter and roll it in birdseed. Use a hook on the end of a string to tie these to a tree in your backyard. 

Invite friends over for a fall party filled with fun activities like bobbing for apples! Send this online invitation to guests to set the stage for your gathering. On the day of the party, set up a large tub of water filled with apples and instruct guets to hold their hands behind their backs and try to bite an apple and pull it out of the water!

 

Make simple and beautiful candleholders that are perfect for fall decoration. Simply core (using a knife or corer) the top inch of an apple and press simple candlesticks into them. If you need to make the hole tighter so the candle will stand up, wrap the bottom in foil. After a few minutes the dripping wax will cover the base and you won’t be able to tell it's there.

 

Store your unripe vegetables in a paper bag with an apple and they will ripen much faster than just leaving them out. This works particularly well with green tomatoes and bananas.

 
Next time you overdo it at the orchard and have way too many apples, try these ideas and you can't go wrong!