Baked apples with mincemeat are a super easy, healthy dessert. With only 3 ingredients, they take just 10 minutes to prepare. They are a perfect Autumn or Winter pudding, served with a big dollop of homemade custard.
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What you'll love about the recipe
- Ideal for the festive season and for using up leftover mincemeat
- Comforting, filling and delicious
- Low in added sugar and fat
- Naturally gluten free
- Cook in the oven or slow cooker
Ingredients
Apples. I think baked apples are best made with cooking apples. They have a soft fluffy texture when cooked, and a nice sharp flavour which goes well with the sweetness of mincemeat. Try to make sure your apples are evenly sized so that they cook through at the same time.
Mincemeat. You can use a bought or homemade mincemeat. Mincemeat has plenty of flavour, so it's a great shortcut which means you don't have to add extra ingredients to the filling.
If you've bought a jar of mincemeat especially for this recipe, you could use it up in these mincemeat flapjacks, or in an apple and mincemeat crumble. Or buy and extra jar and try these mincemeat crumble bars😉
Butter. A small knob of butter on each apple makes the filling rich and moist, and results in lovely cooking juices. You can use vegan butter or coconut oil if you want your baked apples with mincemeat to be dairy free or vegan.
How to make baked apples with mincemeat
There's just 10 minutes of prep required before the apples are ready to cook.
Wash the apples, and using a sharp knife or corer, remove the core of the apples. Ideally, leave the bottom half inch of the apple in place so that it holds in the filling. However, if you accidentally make a hole in the bottom, just make sure you fill the apples when they are in the cooking dish so you don't have to move them.
Score the skin horizontally around the apple, halfway down. This will stop them splitting as they are cooking.
Add a tablespoon of mincemeat to the hole in each apple, pressing it down so that they are well filled. Top with a small knob of butter.
You can either bake the apples in the oven or in a slow cooker.
How to bake apples in the oven
Place the apples in an ovenproof dish and add 250ml of water. Bake in a preheated oven at 190 degrees (170 fan) for 40 minutes. Check that they are cooked through with a skewer.
How to bake apples in the slow cooker
You can either place the apples directly in the slow cooker, or place an oven proof dish in the bottom of the slow cooker and then add the apples. Pour in 50 ml boiling water and cook on high for 1.5-2 hours or low for 3-4 hours. Check that the apples are cooked through with a skewer.
Serving
Baked apples with mincemeat are perfect served with custard, ice cream or a thick Greek yogurt.
For a crispy topping (like a deconstructed apple crumble) then you could make some of this 10 minute stovetop granola to sprinkle on top.
If liked, you can prep and stuff the apples and bake them later in the day. If you end up with any leftovers, store them in the fridge and microwave until heated through.
Frequently asked questions
Cooking fruit and vegetables can destroy some of the nutrients. However, there'll still be plenty of goodness in a baked apple, including fibre and vitamins, especially if you eat the skin. And compared to a sugar laden dessert, baked apples are definitely a healthy option.
I think cooking apples are the best for baking. Bramley apples are generally available in supermarkets, or you may be lucky enough to have your own tree. If you want to use eating apples, use a more tart variety such as Granny Smiths. You may find that eating apples take a little longer to cook, although that will depend on their size.
A medium sized baked apple with mincemeat has 191 calories. As they are high in fibre they are filling, and they are more nutrient dense than many other desserts. Enjoy them as part of a healthy diet.
Other healthy apple desserts
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Recipe
Baked Apples with Mincemeat
Ingredients
- 4 cooking apples
- 4 tablespoon mincemeat
- 15 g butter
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 190 degrees (170 fan). You can also cook these apples in the slow cooker.
- Wash the apples, and using a sharp knife or a corer, remove the core. Ideally, leave the very bottom of the apple in place to keep the filling in. If you accidentally remove it, just fill the apples in the baking dish.
- Score the skin of each apple horizontally, about halfway up. This will stop the apples bursting as the flesh fluffs up.
- Add a tablespoon of mincemeat to each apple. Top with a quarter of the butter.
- Place the apples in a baking dish and add 250ml water. Bake for 40 minutes or until soft.
- If you want to bake the apples in a slow cooker, they'll take about 1.5-2 hours on high or 3-4 hours in low. Cooking times might vary depending on your slow cooker and the size of the apples. You'll only need to add about 50ml of water to a slow cooker.
Nutrition
Please note nutritional information is per serving and is provided for guidance only.
Lea19 says
If you have n air fryer you can simply core, wrap each apple in foil, fill, seal the foil up and bake in the air fryer. Perfect. I use eating apples from tree in garden. Delicious.
Wendy Faulkner says
Thank you, great suggestion.
Karen says
What a great idea, really delicious thank you.