Fireside food recipe

‘A baked apple is a wonder,’ says Lizzie. ‘The texture that you get from baking an apple whole in its skin, allowing the flesh to steam and soften, is like no other. Here the apple is cooked with some of its closest friends to make a dessert that is unsurpassed in its ability to comfort and soothe.’

Baked apples with Calvados

• Serves 4
• 60g sultanas
• 3 tbps Calvados
• 25g caster sugar
• 25g soft brown sugar
• 50g unsalted butter, softened
• 4 firm apples, such as Braeburn or russet, cored
• For the sauce
• 50g caster sugar
• 50ml apple juice
• 2 tbsps Calvados
• 25g unsalted butter
• Double cream or vanilla ice cream and toasted flaked almonds, to serve.
• Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4.
   

lets get cooking…

Put the sultanas in a small pan with the Calvados and bring to the boil, then remove from the heat and allow to cool in the Calvados. Mix the sugars with the butter and add the soaked cooled sultanas.

Put the apples in a small roasting pan. Stuff the apples with the filling and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes until the apples are just tender.

Meanwhile, make the sauce. Put the sugar in a pan with one tbsp of water and dissolve over a low heat, without stirring. Once it’s melted, turn up the heat and boil until you have a dark caramel. Remove from the heat and add the apple juice, Calvados and butter. Stir until smooth.

Serve the sauce over the apples with lots of cream or ice cream and a sprinkling of toasted almonds. 

For more of Lizzie's recipes see the Christmas issue of Life & Style or Fireside Food for Cold Winter Nights by Lizzie Kamenetzky (Ryland Peters & Small, £18.99), with photography by Nassima Rothacker