Apple season is here.  We are already on our second box of apples.  With each new season, I morn the end of another.  I feel as if I never get my fill of fruit, especially peaches.  This morning I realized I never made Raw Peach Crisp.  Then I got to thinking about the huge box of apples sitting in our kitchen.

But raw apple crisp just did not hold the same appeal.  Peaches are soft and juicy; apples are crunchy.  Solution…baked apples and just adapt the raw crisp topping.

Baked Apples with Mascarpone & Crème Fraiche Topping:

Serves 4

Prep:  10 minutes

Total: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1/2c hazelnuts or pecans
• 1 Tbs honey
• 1 Tbs millet
• 1 Tbs cinnamon
• 1 Tbs flax seed
• 5 apples, washed
• 1/2c mascarpone
• 1/2c crème fraiche
• honey to taste
• coconut oil (substitute butter if you like)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Begin by juicing one of the apples.  If you don’t have a juicer, substitute 1/3 cup apple juice.  Set aside.

Combine the first 5 ingredients in a blender and pulse until almost ground – a crumb like consistency.

Using an apple corer, or similar tool, remove the core and all the seeds to within 1/2 inch of the bottom of the apple.  If you don’t have a tool to core the apple, simply use a melon baller or small scoop.  Just make sure that you preserve as much of the apple as possible.  Remove only what is needed.

Place apples upright in a square baking dish.  Spoon filling into the hollow of each apple, mounding remaining filling on top of the apples.  It’s okay if some falls out of the apples.  Pour the apple juice into the baking dish around the apples.

Use the coconut oil to spread on a sheet of foil.  Cover the apples with the foil, coconut side down, and place in oven.  Bake apples for 45 minutes, or until they are slightly tender.  Remove foil and bake for another 10-15 minutes until tender.

While the apples are baking, whip mascarpone in a bowl until it begins to lighten.  Add crème fraiche and honey to taste and whip until combined.

Once the apples are tender, remove from the oven.  Place a generous spoonful of the mascarpone mixture in four bowls.  Transfer an apple on top of the mascarpone, adding another spoonful of the mascarpone on top of the apples as well. Spoon the remaining sauce from the baking dish into the bowls, drizzling over the apples.

Enjoy!