Baked apples

Which apples hold up

A baked apple needs to soften all the way through without collapsing into applesauce. Firm apples that keep their shape work best:

• Best: Honeycrisp, Rome, Braeburn, Jonagold, Pink Lady.
• Fine, but tarter: Granny Smith. Add an extra teaspoon of maple syrup.
• Avoid: McIntosh and Red Delicious. McIntosh bursts and turns to mush, and Red Delicious goes mealy.

Choose apples of the same size so they are done at the same time, and pick ones that stand up straight. The same apples, sliced, make a healthy apple crisp.

Keeping them from splitting

As an apple bakes, steam builds up under the skin. If it cannot escape, the skin bursts and the apple slumps. Scoring a thin line around the middle gives the steam a way out. The water in the dish also helps: it keeps the bottoms from scorching and turns into a light syrup with the juices.

Baked apples in the microwave

Prepare the apples the same way, put them in a microwave-safe dish with 2 tablespoons of water, and cover loosely. Microwave on high for 4 to 6 minutes for two apples, or 6 to 8 minutes for four, until tender. The filling does not crisp the way it does in the oven, but it takes 10 minutes instead of an hour.

Air fryer baked apples

Halved apples suit the air fryer best, because whole ones often will not fit with the basket closed. Halve the apples from stem to base, scoop out the core with a melon baller, and pile the filling on top. Set them in a small pan that fits in the basket, with 2 tablespoons of water around them, and air fry at 350°F for 15 to 20 minutes, until a knife slides in easily. If the filling browns before the apples are soft, lay a piece of foil over them, tucked under the pan so the fan cannot lift it. Whole apples, if your basket is tall enough, take 25 to 30 minutes at 350°F. Air fryers vary, so check with a knife a few minutes early.

Variations

• Without the filling: core the apples, put 1 teaspoon of butter, 1 teaspoon of maple syrup and a pinch of cinnamon in each, and bake as above. About 150 kcal each.
• With cranberries: use dried cranberries instead of raisins, and add a little orange zest.
• Nut-free: replace the walnuts with an extra 2 tablespoons of oats and a tablespoon of pumpkin seeds.
• Halved: cut the apples in half from stem to base, scoop out the core with a melon baller, and pile the filling on top. They bake in 25 to 30 minutes.

Baked apples and oatmeal

A baked apple is already half of a bowl of oatmeal: the filling is oats, nuts and cinnamon. Make a batch on the weekend, then warm one in the microwave for about a minute and spoon it, with its juices, over a bowl of oatmeal made with 1/2 cup (40 g) of rolled oats. Mash it in or chop it up. You will not need any extra sugar.

Made with water, the oatmeal adds about 150 kcal, 5 g of protein, 3 g of fat and 27 g of carbohydrate, so the bowl comes to about 380 kcal, with 8 g of protein, 11 g of fat and 68 g of carbohydrate. Cooking the oats in 1 cup of 2% milk instead adds about 120 kcal and 8 g of protein. A baked apple also works chopped over high-protein overnight oats.

Keeping them

Baked apples keep 3 days in the fridge, covered. Reheat in the microwave for about a minute, or eat them cold for breakfast with yogurt.

What they are worth nutritionally

One baked apple with its filling, baked in water, has about 230 kcal, with 3 g of protein, 8 g of fat and 41 g of carbohydrate, including about 6 g of fiber. Most of the sugar comes from the apple itself, and the recipe adds only about 1/2 tablespoon of maple syrup per apple. Eaten with the skin, a whole apple provides more fiber than most desserts. With 1/2 cup of plain Greek yogurt, it becomes a breakfast with about 15 g of protein. For a chocolate dessert with fiber in it and no flour, try black bean brownies.