Description
These perfectly healthy baked apples are filled with a sweet, cinnamon-spiced mixture and walnuts. They are a quick, healthy, and delicious fall/winter treat.
Ingredients
- 4 medium gala apples or 6 small ones, cored and/or halved
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) hot water
FILLING
- ½ cup + 1 tablespoon (50 gr) rolled oats
- 1/3 cup (65 gr) coconut sugar
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup plus more for serving
- 1 teaspoon (15 ml) vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ cup (30 gr) chopped walnuts or pecans*
- 2 tablespoons ( 30 gr) firm coconut oil*
- ½ teaspoon pumpkin spice (optional)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
FOR SERVING (optional)
- a few tablespoons (soy yogurt) per baked apple
- a scoop of (vegan vanilla) ice cream per baked apple
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F / 180°C.
Rinse and core the apples. Try to avoid cutting through the apple. I like to cut the apple in half and scoop out the inside to create open baked apples. Start with a knife around the core and continue with a spoon to scoop out the center of the apple. You can also use a melon baller scoop to dig out the core, or an apple core tool. See the video for a demonstration.
In a medium bowl, combine rolled oats, chopped walnuts, coconut sugar, maple syrup, coconut oil, vanilla, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. The filling should be a sticky slight moist mixture. If the mixture doesn’t stick, add 2 tablespoons water (or more) until all the oats stick together.
Spoon mixture into the cavity of each apple.
Place the apples into a baking dish or cast-iron pan and carefully pour the hot water into the dish.
Bake apples at 350°F / 180°C for about 50 minutes. After 30 minutes drizzle the liquid in the dish over the apples so they don’t dry out. The apples should be tender (soft) but not fall apart. The oat mixture should be browned.
Drizzle with a bit of maple syrup before serving. Serve as is or with yogurt or ice cream.
Notes
- Choose the right type of apple for this recipe. Gala apples are great but mealy apples (such as red delicious) will fall apart in the oven.
- Be creative with this recipe. You can add raisins, lemon zest, cranberries, or chopped dates.
- Baked apples can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for about 1-2 days. All you need to do before serving is reheat the apples. Place the apples in the oven until warm or in the microwave. Stand by because they should not fall apart.
- The liquid in the baking dish /pan is to prevent the apples from drying out or sticking to the bottom.
- Instead of coconut oil, you can use vegan butter for a deeper flavor.
- You can make this recipe oil-free if you wish. Instead of the coconut oil add one tablespoon of a nut- or seed butter, such as tahini or runny almond butter, and a tablespoon of maple syrup.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4