My private challenge is to try a new recipe every week. If the “bones” are good, then I work with it over time until I like what I have. Once David and I agree it meets our very high standards, I write it up. Very often this works out great. And then there are times like yesterday when they don’t work out at all. The recipe was confusing and the result was, well, AWFUL!
Fortunately, David is an adventurous eater and always willing to try these experiments. The other good thing is that he is quite willing to give me his unvarnished opinion. In case you are wondering you are supposed to laugh here – it is that was joke. Seriously, he is a good cook in his own right and some of our best food ideas are a collaboration.
Apples are here! There are few things better than a crisp, tangy apple. A close second, however, is a warm, fragrant baked one. Quick comfort and always a great desert.
We got a bunch of apples at Farmers Market so it seemed like a good idea to bake some of them today. While David was coring them we starting talking about how to stuff the core. We kept throwing ideas back and forth and eventually ended up with the best baked apple I have ever eaten.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Put 1/4 inch of water in the bottom of a shallow baking pan
- Cover the pan (with water in the bottom) with aluminum foil
- Core 4 Apples – tart ones like granny smith work well, but really any kind will do; once the apples are cored set in the baking dish
- Put nuts and spices into the food processor and pulse five times (both can be changed according to what you have and what you like; but this is what we used):
- 1/4 cup pecans (you can use any nuts you like)
- 1 Tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- Add 1/4 cup coconut shredded coconut and pulse 5 more times
- IF THE APPLES ARE VERY SOUR — pour 1/2 teaspoon of honey into the core space
- Fill the core space with the nut, spice and coconut mixture from above; if some spills out, don’t worry it won’t burn or make to big of a mess
- Pour coconut milk over the top of the apples until there is about 1/4-1/2 inch of coconut milk on the bottom of the pan
- OPTIONAL: we had some mango puree left over from breakfast so we threw that on top
- Sprinkle with cinnamon
- Bake for 30-45 minutes until you can poke the apple with a knife and it cleanly pierces it
Enjoy by spooning the “extra” coconut milk over the top. You can always add nut milk or even cashew cheese. Of course if you are worried about the fat content (coconut milk has lots of fat) you can always skip it and just put a little water in the bottom of the pan.
The verdict on these apples? With or without mango the result was heavenly!