Apple pie (baked in apples)

As I said in my last post, I've been working on more basic recipes - figuring out the perfect chocolate chip cookie, the perfect yellow cupcake, the perfect brownie, etc. While all that is fun (and yummy), I get bored and occasionally need to make a more non-conventional recipe.

I'm not the biggest fan of pie crust (making or eating it), which is why I rarely do pie recipes on this blog. However, I do love pie filling, especially apple filling, making today's recipe perfect for me.

Here, instead of baking the apple pie in a pie crust, the filling is baked inside a cored-out apple. Not only does this give you more apple (and less crust), it also creates an adorable personal serving that's just the right amount.

The apple filling here is just like any traditional filling. I used Granny Smith apples here, but any of the usual apple varieties good for baking will work! The trickier part of this recipe would be coring out the apples. I just used a spoon (and a friend's help) to dig into the apples, but a melon baller or an ice cream scoop might be easier to use.

Not having to deal with rolling out a pie crust also makes this recipe easy. You simply cut out some strips from the dough and weave them on top of the apples. Even weaving the lattice is easy, now that it's smaller! Any pie dough recipe will do in this recipe, and you don't need very much of it. A friend was nice enough to make the dough that I used here and I suggest you too use a dough from scratch - it's always better that way.

When I served these, I drizzled them with a homemade caramel sauce and had ice cream top as well - apple a la mode is always a sure bet! Nothing like a warm apple pie on a chilly January day...

Apple pie (in baked apples) - makes 6 apples
Adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction

• ½ pie crust recipe (from scratch or from a mix)
• 8 large Granny Smith apples
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 2 Tbsp warm water
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup (200 g) white sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp almond milk
• Salted caramel sauce (optional, for serving)

1. Make pie crust ahead of time and chill in fridge. 
2. Preheat oven to 375F. 
3. Peel, core and dice two of the apples. 
4. Mix the cornstarch, water, cinnamon, sugar, and diced apples in a saucepan over medium heat. 
5. Stir constantly until the apples are soft and have released their juices (about 5-10 minutes). 
6. Let simmer on low heat for 5 more minutes, stir in the vanilla, and then let cool. 
7. Cut off the top of the remaining apples and core out the apples until the apples resemble a bowl. 
8. Fill apple bowls with the apple filling. 
9. Roll out pie crust to about ⅛ inch thick and cut strips about ¼ inch thick.
10. Weave strips over the tops of the apple bowls. 
11. Mix egg and milk together to form the egg wash and brush over tops of the pie crust. 
12.  Place apples on a baking pan covered in foil and bake for 25-30 minutes or until the crust is browned and the filling is bubbling. 
13. Top with the salted caramel sauce and pair with vanilla ice cream, if desired. 
14. Enjoy!