Whole Baked Apples with Brown Butter Oat-Walnut Filling & Cider Caramel

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

A proper baked apple, where the fruit itself is the dessert rather than a vehicle for cake. Firm apples are hollowed out, packed with a brown-butter filling of oats, toasted walnuts and dates, then baked in cider until the flesh goes silky but still holds its shape. The pan juices reduce with cream into a loose cider caramel you spoon over the top, and cold crème fraîche cuts the sweetness. No pastry, no batter — just fruit, butter and heat.

Ingredients

• 4 large firm baking apples (Braeburn, Honeycrisp, Rome Beauty or Golden Delicious), about 8 oz each
• 1 cup unfiltered apple cider
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
• 1 strip lemon zest, 2 inches long
• 1 cinnamon stick

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/2 cup walnut halves, toasted and roughly chopped
• 1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 4 Medjool dates, pitted and chopped
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon packed dark brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 pinch flaky sea salt

• 3/4 cup crème fraîche or lightly whipped cream, cold

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 375°F with a rack in the middle. Choose a baking dish or ovenproof skillet just large enough to hold the 4 apples without them touching — an 8- or 9-inch square dish is usually right.
2. Make the brown butter first: melt the 4 tablespoons butter in a small light-colored saucepan over medium heat. Continue cooking, swirling often, for 4 to 6 minutes, until the foam subsides, the milk solids at the bottom turn deep amber and it smells nutty. Immediately pour it into a medium bowl, scraping in every bit of the browned solids, and let it cool for 5 minutes.
3. Add the oats, walnuts, brown sugar, dates, cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon zest and kosher salt to the brown butter and stir until the mixture looks like damp, clumpy streusel. Set aside.
4. Prep the apples: slice a thin sliver off the bottom of each if needed so they sit level. Using an apple corer or a melon baller and a paring knife, remove the stem, core and seeds from the top, working down to within 1/2 inch of the base — leave the bottom intact so it acts as a cup. Widen the cavity to about 1 1/4 inches across, scooping out extra flesh as needed.
5. With the tip of a paring knife, score a shallow ring through the skin around the widest part of each apple, about 1/8 inch deep. This lets the skin expand as it bakes instead of splitting messily.
6. Pack the filling into the cavities, pressing it down firmly with your thumb and mounding any extra on top. Stand the apples in the baking dish.
7. Pour the cider around (not over) the apples, tuck in the lemon zest strip and cinnamon stick, and set a piece of the remaining 2 tablespoons butter on top of each apple.
8. Bake, uncovered, for 45 to 55 minutes, basting the apples with the pan cider every 15 minutes. They are done when a thin knife slides into the thickest part with no resistance and the skins are wrinkled and glossy but the apples still stand up. If the tops of the filling darken too fast, tent loosely with foil.
9. Carefully transfer the apples to serving bowls with a large spoon, keeping them upright. Rest them for 10 minutes — they are volcanically hot inside.
10. Make the caramel: discard the cinnamon stick and zest, then pour the pan juices into a small saucepan (scrape in any caramelized bits). Add the cream, the 1 tablespoon brown sugar and any butter left in the dish. Simmer over medium heat, stirring now and then, for 5 to 8 minutes, until reduced to about 1/2 cup and thick enough to coat a spoon. Off the heat, stir in the lemon juice and flaky salt.
11. Spoon the warm cider caramel over and around each apple and add a generous spoonful of cold crème fraîche alongside. Serve warm, with a spoon and a knife — the point is to cut through skin, soft flesh and filling in the same bite.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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