It’s chilly outside as we are feeling the signs of autumn. I’m craving hot sweet and spicy baked apples. It’s the perfect seasonal fruit and you can buy it on the cheap wherever you shop around town. Instead of apple cake or muffins, I thought, “Why not dress up the fruit and embrace it for the Fall?” It’s apple time!

Back in the 20th century, my mom used whatever kind of apple we had on hand. After all, baked apples aren’t rocket science. No bells and whistles for my family in suburbia. A bit of cinnamon and white sugar and the apples were stuffed into the oven.

Once baked, a dollop of whipped cream was the special touch. Done. After all, it was a different era. Convenience food was big, whereas, home-cooking was put on the back burner except on the weekends.

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This week I changed it up a bit. I used Fuji and Red Delicious apples. I stuffed each one with stuff in the pantry. Here’s my European-style remake of mom’s baked apples I ate when I was a kid.

Stuffed Baked Apples

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2 Red Delicious Apples

Divide for each apple:

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2-3 tablespoons brown sugar 3 tablespoons European style butter

½ cup oats, uncooked

1 teaspoon cinnamon ¼ cup walnuts, chopped ¼ cup golden raisins

Vanilla ice cream

Chocolate shavings or chips, milk, dark, or white

Rinse and cut apples in half. Scoop out seeds, making a hole. Set aside. In a bowl, combine flour, sugar, butter, oats, cinnamon, nuts, and raisins. Stuff each apple crevice with the mixture. Place apples in a baking dish. Fill with 1 inch of water. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes or until tender. Serve right out of the oven. Top with a spoonful of vanilla ice cream. Sprinkle with chocolate shavings or grate chips. Serves 2.

It was a fun experience. A blast from the past. Eating a warm baked apple with ice cream topped with chocolate is decadent. The Red Delicious apple is soft and mushy like a baked apple should be, whereas the Fuji is crunchy. I suppose Granny Smith apples, the kind apple pies are made of, would be simply perfect. The season is young. One more thing: Save the crisp, fresh Fuji apples to munch on as is.

— Cal Orey, M.A. Is an author and journalist. Her books include the Healing Powers Series (Vinegar, Olive Oil, Chocolate, Honey, Coffee, Tea, Superfoods, and Essential Oils) published by Kensington. (The collection has been featured by the Good Cook Book Club.) Her website is http://www.calorey.com.