✔ Updated · new copycat recipe with step photos
These copycat Taco Bell Caramel Apple Empanadas tuck cinnamon apples and thick caramel into crisp, blistered pastry. The original keeps popping back for short runs, so here is one you never have to wait for.
How Do You Make Taco Bell Caramel Apple Empanadas at Home? (Quick Answer)
Cook diced Granny Smith apples with butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and lemon, thicken with a cornstarch slurry, then stir in thick caramel sauce off the heat and cool completely. Cut puff pastry into squares, add 3 tablespoons of filling, egg wash, fold and crimp. Chill 15 minutes, then fry at 350°F for 2 to 3 minutes a side, or bake at 400°F.
At a glance
The one tip that matters: Cool the filling completely before it touches the pastry. Warm filling melts the butter layers, the seal goes weak, and that's how caramel ends up in your oil.
Why You'll Love These Empanadas
- The crackly crust blistered, golden puff pastry, fried until it shatters.
- Real caramel apple filling tender Granny Smiths in a thick cinnamon caramel.
- Fry or bake with an oven option that keeps all the caramel.
- Freezer friendly shape a batch now, fry from frozen later.
- Built on my apple pie the same tested filling as my McDonald's apple pie, plus caramel.
What Is a Taco Bell Caramel Apple Empanada?
The Caramel Apple Empanada is Taco Bell's golden pastry pocket, fried until it crackles and filled with apples in a cinnamon caramel. Of all the lost Taco Bell desserts, it's the one people search for most.
My filling starts from my McDonald's apple pie copycat, because the two are close cousins. What turns apple pie into a caramel apple empanada is three tablespoons of thick caramel, stirred in off the heat.
Is it still on the menu? Not as a regular item. It was on the menu for about a decade before Taco Bell cut it in 2019. Since then it has popped back for short runs on Taco Bell's throwback menus, and then it vanishes again. Watch the Taco Bell app near you, but don't count on it.
Ingredient Notes
Exact amounts are in the recipe card below.
- Granny Smith apples: tart and firm, so they stay in tender pieces instead of turning to applesauce.
- Brown and white sugar: brown sugar for a caramel note, a little white sugar for clean sweetness.
- Cornstarch slurry: thickens the juices so the filling is glossy, not runny.
- Caramel sauce: a thick, spoonable caramel. Jarred is fine.
- Puff pastry: one 17.3-ounce package, thawed in the fridge so it stays cold.
- Oil: a neutral oil with a high smoke point, like canola or vegetable.
Step-by-Step Photos
Here's how it comes together. Exact amounts, times and temperatures are in the recipe card below.
Tips for Success
- Thick caramel, not syrup. A spoonable caramel sauce stays in the filling. A thin caramel syrup just makes it runny and leaks at the seams.
- Dice small. Quarter-inch apple dice soften in 6 to 8 minutes and pack neatly into the pastry, with no sharp corners poking through.
- Keep the pastry cold. Work with one sheet at a time and leave the other in the fridge. Cold pastry puffs into those big blisters.
- Crimp like you mean it. My first empanada burst in the oil because I rushed the filling while it was still warm and barely pressed the edges. Egg wash, press out the air, then a firm fork crimp.
- Clip on a thermometer. Hold the oil between 340 and 360°F. Too cool and the pastry soaks up oil, too hot and it browns before the layers cook through.
- Hot oil safety. Back burner, handle turned in, lower them in with a spider away from you, never leave the pot, keep a lid within reach and keep water well away from the oil.
- Wait the 10 minutes. I know. But that caramel comes out hotter than anything else on the table.
Copycat Taco Bell Caramel Apple Empanadas
8
empanadas30
minutes25
minutes410
kcal1
hour50
minutesCopycat-style Taco Bell Caramel Apple Empanadas: diced Granny Smith apples cooked with butter, brown sugar and cinnamon, finished with thick caramel sauce, sealed in puff pastry and fried until golden and blistered. Bake option included. Makes 8.
Ingredients
- For the Caramel Apple Filling
1 lb Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch dice (about 3 medium, 450 g)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 pinch fine salt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon cornstarch, mixed with 2 tablespoons cold water
3 tablespoons thick caramel sauce (store-bought or homemade)
- For the Pastry
1 17.3-oz package frozen puff pastry sheets, thawed in the fridge (2 sheets)
1 large egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water (egg wash)
- To Fry
4 cups vegetable or canola oil, for frying
2 tablespoons extra caramel sauce, to drizzle (optional)
Directions
- Make the Filling
- Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the diced apples, brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and lemon juice and cook, stirring often, for 6 to 8 minutes, until the apples are just tender.
- Stir in the cornstarch slurry and cook for 1 to 2 minutes more, until thick and glossy. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the 3 tablespoons of caramel sauce.
- Spread the filling on a plate and let it cool completely, about 30 minutes. Warm filling melts the pastry and is the reason empanadas tear.
- Shape the Empanadas
- Roll each cold puff pastry sheet gently into a 10-inch square on a lightly floured surface and cut each into 4 squares, for 8 in total.
- Spoon about 3 tablespoons of filling onto one half of each square, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Brush the edges with egg wash, fold the pastry over into a rectangle, press out the air and crimp the edges firmly with a fork.
- Chill the empanadas on a lined tray for 15 minutes so the pastry firms up.
- Fry
- Heat 2 inches of oil in a heavy pot to 350°F, with a thermometer clipped to the side. Use a back burner and keep a lid nearby.
- Lower 2 or 3 empanadas in with a spider, away from you, and fry for 2 to 3 minutes per side, until deep golden and bubbled all over. Keep the oil between 340 and 360°F.
- Drain on a wire rack and wait 10 minutes before eating: the caramel filling comes out very hot. Drizzle with a little extra caramel if you like.
- To bake instead: brush the chilled empanadas with egg wash and bake on a parchment-lined sheet at 400°F for 20 to 24 minutes, until puffed and deep golden.
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Fried vs Baked Empanadas
Both are good. They are just different.
| Fried | Baked | |
|---|---|---|
| Temperature | 350°F oil | 400°F oven |
| Time | 2 to 3 minutes a side | 20 to 24 minutes |
| Crust | Blistered and crackly | Puffed and flaky |
| Closest to the original | Yes | Close enough |
Variations
A few fun twists.
- Cinnamon sugar: roll the hot empanadas in cinnamon sugar like my apple pies.
- Salted caramel: use salted caramel and add a tiny pinch of flaky salt on the drizzle.
- Air fryer: brush with egg wash and air fry at 375°F for 10 to 12 minutes, until puffed and golden.
- A la mode: serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Storage and Make-Ahead
The filling keeps 3 days in the fridge. Fried empanadas are best the day they're made; store leftovers loosely covered at room temperature for a day and re-crisp at 350°F for 5 to 8 minutes. Freeze shaped, unfried empanadas for up to 2 months and fry from frozen, about a minute longer per side.
More Fast Food Dessert Copycats
If you love a fried hand pie, my copycat McDonald's apple pie uses the same filling with a cinnamon sugar coat, and my McDonald's Holiday Pie is the festive one. Want a jar on the shelf for later? My homemade canned apple pie filling keeps apples ready for hand pies all year.
See more lost menu treats in our list of discontinued fast food items, and browse my copycat recipes collection for the rest.
See every lost Taco Bell favorite in my collection of discontinued Taco Bell items you can still make at home.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is in a Taco Bell Caramel Apple Empanada?
Taco Bell's version is a crisp, golden pastry pocket filled with apples in a cinnamon caramel. My copycat uses tender Granny Smith apples cooked with brown sugar and cinnamon, finished with thick caramel sauce, in fried puff pastry.
Is the Caramel Apple Empanada still at Taco Bell?
It's off the regular menu. It was on the menu for about a decade before Taco Bell cut it in 2019, and it has popped back for short runs since on throwback menus. Watch the Taco Bell app, but don't count on it.
Can I bake these instead of frying?
Yes. Brush the chilled empanadas with egg wash and bake at 400°F for 20 to 24 minutes, until puffed and deep golden. You won't get the blisters, but the caramel apple filling is all still there.
Can I use canned apple pie filling?
You can in a pinch. Chop the apples smaller, stir in the caramel and a pinch of cinnamon, and use about 3 tablespoons per empanada. Homemade filling is less sweet and holds its shape better.
Why did my empanadas burst?
Usually warm filling or a weak seal. Cool the filling completely, leave a 1/2-inch border, brush on egg wash, press out the air and crimp firmly. Chilling the shaped empanadas for 15 minutes helps too.
Can I freeze caramel apple empanadas?
Yes. Freeze them shaped but unfried on a tray, then bag them for up to 2 months. Fry from frozen at 350°F, adding about a minute per side, or bake from frozen at 400°F for 25 to 28 minutes.
