Mediterranean Baked Apple Dessert

Hello! 

So if you know me at all, you would know without a doubt that I love sweets. LOVE them. When I started traversing the Mediterranean diet coast, I immediately began to think about dessert recipes. I am both excited and disappointed with the outcome. I have yet to find any "triple chocolate cake" or "chocolate chip cookie" recipes BUT it is a challenge I'm up to try and make on my own, Mediterranean (or as I like to say "Medi") style!

Until then, I did find a dessert of sorts made with apples to fill in that sweet tooth gap! Because if you were close enough to me to know I love desserts, you would know that I also love apples! So much so, I am planning for an orchard business on down the road!

So this little gem I'm going to share with you is called "Baked Apple Dessert" but with the Medi twist (AKA: no processed food). I snooped it out from here but the directions were a little hard to work with. I altered my recipe ever so slightly, but please feel free to revert to the original!

You first want to find yourself three medium sized baking apples. I actually picked up Jazz apples to see how well they would do with baking, and surprisingly it went well! But if you don't feel that adventurous, go with the known Granny Smith, Jonagold, Jonathan type apples. Wash them well, cut them in half, and core. Simply do this by sliding your knife on one side of the core, then the other, until you've wiggled out the hard middle. Make sure you haven't left any of it behind!

                           

Place the cored apples into a glass baking dish, then pre-heat your oven to 350 F. 

While your oven is heating, whip up your glaze which is 4 TBSP of honey, 1/2 TSP ground cinnamon (I used a pinch more… I love cinnamon!), 1/4 TSP nutmeg, 1/4 TSP allspice, 1/2 Cup chopped almonds or walnuts or pecans (or all three!), and about 1/2 a TBSP of lemon juice. Do the lemon juice last and depending on your love of lemon juice (I personally dislike it!), you can taste test to see how much you really want in your glaze! Stir well, then drizzle into your cored apples. A lot of glaze slides out, but as long as there is a little to flavor up your apples, you'll be fine!

Put about 1/2 an inch of water in your baking dish, and when your oven is ready, pop them in for 40-45 minutes and you'll be ready to go! Immediately serve after they're finished, and top off with remaining glaze in the bottom of baking dish (or a scoop of vanilla ice-cream like my family did, if you're willing to cheat a bit!)

I was taking them out of the oven just as soon as my sister came home from work and she dramatically exclaimed: "It smells like fall in here!"And my goodness, it certainly did! Being near the end of summer, the comforting smells of cinnamon and nutmeg made me extremely anxious for fall time!

Mediterranean Baked Apple Dessert:

Serving Size: 6 apple halves

Ingredients: 

- 3 baking apples

- 4 tablespoons of honey

-1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

-1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg

-1/4 teaspoon of allspice

-1/2 cup chopped almonds, pecans, or walnuts

-1/2 tablespoon of lemon juice (to taste)

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 350 F. Wash, cut (in half), and core your apples. Set face up into glass baking dish. Mix together your remaining ingredients to make glaze for apples. Evenly spoon the glaze into cored apples. Fill your glass dish with about 1/2 an inch of water, then bake for 40-45 minutes. Serve immediately (and most delicious with ice-cream, to all the cheaters out there!).