Most folks love apples. They are good any time of the day, from chopped apples in your morning oatmeal, to placing them in between two slices of turkey for lunch, or cutting them into sticks and served in a stir fry for dinner. Eat them raw with peanut butter as a snack, or bake them into a lovely fall dessert.
We know that apples are a healthy treat as well as a delicious one. The old saying “an apple a day keeps the doctor away” turns out to be based in fact as well. Apples are a great source of vitamin C, potassium, and fiber. They also contain pectin, which becomes food for healthy gut bacteria. As it turns out, they are also are rich in antioxidants and phytonutrients that may reduce the risk of developing cancer, hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease.
But which apples are best to cook for specific recipes? Here are a few recommendations based on the Farmer’s Almanac:
Braeburn: Tart, sweet, aromatic, tall shape, bright color, best for applesauce.
Cortland: Tart, crisp, larger than McIntosh, best for pies, fruit salad, and applesauce.
Fuji: Sweet, juicy, firm red skin, best used for baking.
Gala: Mild, sweet, juicy, crisp, yellow-orange skin with red striping (resembles a peach), best used for cider.
Granny Smith: Moderately sweet, crisp flesh, green skin, best used for baking.
Jonagold: Tangy-sweet, yellow top, red bottom, best used for pies and applesauce.
McIntosh: Juicy, sweet, pinkish-white flesh, red skin, best used for applesauce.
Rome Beauty: Mildly tart, crisp, greenish-white flesh, thick skin, best used for baking and cider.
I used beautiful, deep red Rome apples for this recipe. I’m sure a lot of you have your own baked apple recipe, but surely some who do not. I never had one growing up, and it wasn’t until I was married for several years before I even tried one. Now I am hooked.
This sweet treat is rich in savory wholesomeness. It is a very simple, old-fashioned dessert. The sweet honey and brown sugar, combined with the cinnamon and nutmeg make this a delicious, luscious delicacy. Perfect for a cool, fall day— or any other day!
They do not photograph well after baking, hence the feature.
Better to just eat them.
This recipe will serve 4 people who will feel the fall spirit.
Ingredients for Baked Apples:
4 large baking apples, like Rome Beauty
2 lemon wedges
2 to 3 dried apple rings, cut into bits
1 teaspoons honey for each apple, plus 1-2 more for liquid
A pinch of nutmeg for each apple
A pinch of cinnamon for each apple
1/2 teaspoon brown sugar for each apple
1 tablespoon salted butter
1 cup apple cider or juice
1/4 cup bourbon
Heavy cream, whipped cream or ice cream, for serving (optional)
Cinnamon, for dusting (optional)
Center a rack in the oven and heat to 375.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil, and set a 9- or 10-inch glass pie dish on top.
Cut a small cap off the top of each apple.
Using a paring knife or corer, core the apples, making sure not to go all the way to the bottom.
Cut away and reserve about 1/2 inch of peel around the tops of the apples.
Rub the peeled portions of the apples with the lemon, squeezing a little juice into each opening.
Fill each apple with an equal amount of dried apple, pressing down lightly as needed to push bits into the opening.
Pour 1/2 teaspoon honey and sprinkle brown sugar over the dried fruit in each apple.
Top with a pinch of nutmeg and cinnamon.
Cut the butter into 4 pieces, and top each apple with a pat.
Take apples out of dish; set aside.
Pour in the cider or juice, bourbon and stir in 1 to 2 teaspoons honey.
Add lemon wedges and a few of the reserved peels into the pie dish.
(The honey won’t blend evenly into the cider, and that’s fine.)
Add apples back into baking dish.
Bake the apples, basting occasionally with the cider mixture, until you can poke them with a skewer or the tip of a knife and not meet much resistance, 50 to 70 minutes.
Since apples are so variable, check early and often, as you might need more or less time.
It’s that simple!
