Baked Apples

Ingredients

• apples
• white sugar

Method

Choose apples that balance sweetness with acidity—Bramleys, Granny Smiths, or similar cooking varieties that hold their shape during baking rather than collapse into mush. Avoid Red Delicious or other eating apples; they dissolve into jam. Wash them under cold water to remove any waxy coating, which traps steam and prevents even heat penetration.

Core each apple from the top, leaving a quarter-inch of flesh at the base so the filling doesn't escape. Pack the cavity with caster sugar—roughly one tablespoon per apple, depending on size and tartness. Place them upright on a lined baking tray. The sugar will draw moisture from the flesh through osmosis, dissolving into a syrup that caramelises at the surface.

Set the oven to 180°C and bake for 40–50 minutes. This is slower than the Victorian instruction; modern ovens heat more evenly, and lower temperature prevents the skin from charring before the flesh softens. Watch for the moment the skin splits and splits again—usually in four or five fissures radiating from the top. The flesh beneath should bulge slightly through the cracks, taking on a translucent appearance. Test with the tip of a knife: it should slide through the thickest part with almost no resistance. The timing depends on apple size, so rely on the skin's texture rather than the clock.

Remove from the oven and serve warm. The residual heat will continue the fruit cooking slightly as it cools, and the collapsed flesh will firm just enough to hold its shape on the plate. Do not dust with additional sugar—the caramelised layer on the skin and the concentrated syrup pooled inside provide all the sweetness needed. If the filling tastes cloying, a pinch of fleur de sel scattered over the top cuts the richness and amplifies the fruit's underlying tartness.