This recipe arose after Kitchen Monster F's Mum provided me with a large number of apples from their garden. With so many apples, and limited kitchen facilities in my student flat, I was at a loss as to what to do with them! Crumble has been done to death and I didn't fancy battling with pastry to make a pie.... Then I remembered what it is about crumble and pie that everybody loves.... The filling! So instead of faffing about with crust or crumble a simple stew of apples was the answer! The recipe below was created for the Kitchen Monsters' tastes, but you can pretty much do what you like with it and adapt as you see fit. Add other spices such as star anise or cloves, use brandy or rum instead of wine.... The possibilities are endless!
Ingredients:
A selection of 8-10 apples (cookers or similar)
A bottle of wine (cheap plonk is more than acceptable)
2 x tablespoons of brown sugar (add more depending on how much of a sweet tooth you have)
2 x cinnamon sticks
2 x teaspoons of nutmeg
2 x teaspoons of allspice
1 x tablespoon of grated ginger
1 x lemon
Optional extras
raisins
hazelnuts
pecan nuts
Method:
1) Pour half the bottle of your selected wine into a large cooking pot and add all the spices, stir to combine.
2) Place the mixture on a low heat but do not allow to boil, you just want to warm it
through.
3) Meanwhile peel and roughly chop half the apples in to chunks and place in a bowl
4) Peel and the rest of the apples and grate in to the bowl. Squeeze the lemon ov
er the chopped and grated apple to prevent it going brown and add 1 tablespoon of sugar
5) Set the apples aside for 5 minutes while the wine mixture continues to warm through
6) Add the apples to the wine mixture, continuing
to leave the pot on a low to medium heat and stir to coat them. Add the rest of the sugar.
7) Leave on the heat to cook down, adding the rest of the wine at regular intervals
(you could also add more spices if the stew is not to your tastes)
8) Continue to cook the apples until they resemble a stew like consistency with a few large chunks still visible.
9) Serve while still warm with a scattering of raisins and nuts if you wish and a dollop of creme fraiche or yoghurt!
Give this a go, it makes your kitchen smell incredible too.... Like Christmas arriving early!
Enjoy!
Kitchen Monsters
