Stuffed Apples

Stuffed Apples is hardly a name for such a delectable dessert that boasts the freshness of fall apples paired with the warm fall flavors of nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, and mace in one of the best custards you’ve ever had that is tied together with a crisp meringue. You’ll wish that your PSL brings so much joy to your mouth. 

This recipe was originally from The Practice of Modern Cookery by George Dalrymple (published during the late 18th century) and Colonial Williamsburg rewrote the recipe for 21st century cooks which I then gave more details to make it easier to follow.

Listen up! I want you to do something specific and I don’t say that often. I think an entire apple for dessert is a large portion, but everyone needs their own apple. You prepare one custard, but by the end of the dish you get two custards. Some of the custard is stuffed in the apples as it bakes. The remaining custard is poured into the dish after it bakes. The custard inside of the apple is looser due to juices from the cooked apple and picks up a glorious apple flavor. When the apple is cut, the custard spills out so there’s not a good way to divide it. Do not use a loophole of using a small apple because your apple well will not be large enough to properly fill. Trust me guys!  

Stuffed Apples Ingredients
water
4 large eggs
1 c heavy whipping cream
½ c of sugar, divided
¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp ginger
¼ tsp mace (see notes)
4 medium to large apples

Stuffed Apples Directions
Preheat oven to 325 ℉.

Add about 3” of water to a saucepan and bring it to a simmer (just below a boil).

Separate 4 eggs. I crack the egg then open it a smidge to let the whites fall through the opening. Put the whites in a very clean bowl that is not plastic and preferably one that was previously wiped with white vinegar. Put the yolks into a medium glass or stainless steel bowl.

Add 1 c heavy whipping cream, ¼ c of sugar, ¼ tsp cinnamon, ¼ tsp nutmeg, ¼ tsp ginger, and ¼ tsp mace to the egg yolks. Set the bowl on top of the simmering water and whisk until it’s fully incorporated. Give it a quick stir every few minutes. To know when it’s done, dip a serving spoon into the custard. Run your finger through the custard then turn the spoon perpendicular to your line. The line should stay almost intact with about 1/16” thick coating of custard remaining on the spoon.

Stand the apples upright and with a sharp knife, cut the skin off in a downward motion. Leave as much flesh on as possible. You could also use a potato peeler. Turn the apple on its side and thinly slice off the bottom.

Put the apple upright. Remove most of the core, but leave a ½”-1” base. Essentially you’re creating a shot glass hollow in the center of the apple. I don’t know of any kitchen gadgets to do the trick nor would I recommend getting one to make one dish. Take a pointy knife (the smaller the better) and insert the knife gently straight down on the outside of the core. You don’t need to go deep. Pull the knife up and repeat in an adjacent spot. When you have a circle cut, insert the knife into the cut closest to you and angle the knife down and away from you so it goes through the core. Remove a layer of core. Repeat the process until you’ve cleared out the core minus the bottom ½”-1”. Be patient because you want your vessel (the apple) not to have leaks.

Whip the 4 egg whites. You have two options. You can whisk it by hand. Simply hold the bowl with your non-dominant hand and quickly move a whisk left to right in the liquid using your dominant hand. Stop just before you reach stiff peaks. Dip the whisk into the meringue and pull up, it should leave a little point. Turn it upside down. If the point gives just the slightest bend, it’s ready). You could also whisk it with an electric beater.

Pat the apples dry with a paper towel. Stick a finger or two inside of the apple well and turn it upside down. Spoon ¼ of the meringue on the exterior of the apple then sprinkle 1 Tbl of sugar on top of the meringue. You don’t have to use all of the sugar. Put the apples in a pie plate. Repeat with the remaining 3 apples. Make sure the apples do not touch each other.

Fill the wells of the apples almost to the top with custard. You’ll have some custard left over. Bake 50-60 minutes, until the apples are softened, but still hold their shape. If the sugar on the meringue gets past golden brown, pull them out of the oven.

Spoon the remaining custard into the bottom of the pie plate or put ¼ of the custard on each plate and put an apple on top of the custard. You can eat them hot or cold but I like them warm best.

Notes
If you aren’t real good at separating eggs, make sure you have three containers. One for the yolks and two for the whites. One container of whites is for the “successful whites” and the other container is for the whites you’re actively separating. If a little yolk gets mixed into the white, set it aside for another use, and start again.

If you choose not to use the double boiler method (bowl on top of simmering water), you’ll need to whisk the custard constantly and put it through a fine mesh strainer after it’s cooked.

Mace is really hard to find, but Penzeys carries it. Before you go out and buy it (that’s you recipe followers), will you use it often? Spices have a far shorter shelf life than most of us give them so tread carefully. The dish will be amazing even if you skip the mace.