Baked Apples Crown

Paraguay - I've said it often: 

NO BIRTHDAY CAKE! 

 Actually, that ban came into effect some 20 years ago, enacted by my family physician of a husband.  With a staff of about 50 women, our medical clinic was sure to have a birthday celebration every week.  This meant cake, of course!  Dr. JP, concerned for the health of his employees as much his wife's and his own, banned birthday cakes and soda.  Good for him!  Of course, we were all upset-who's-HE-to-tell-us-what-to-do sort of attitude.  But, little by little, we learned to celebrate without the fat and sugar of pastries and soda.  We came up with fabulous fruit salads, mini sandwiches, trifles, fruit baskets and flavored coffees.  We also banned from the clinic all vendors of chips, crackers, pretzels, and even --yes, even-- Girls Scout Cookies.  RADICAL? Perhaps, but the point was well made and well taken: healthcare workers need to be leaders in caring for our own health.  I now look back at pictures of our staff then: wow!  what a group of healthy-looking women!

One of the celebration dish is the Baked Apples Crown: looks like a cake, has individual portions, can be eaten warm or cold or very-very-cold.

Ingredients: (for 8 portions)
- 8 small apples (no bigger than a tennis ball)

- 8 teaspoons of sugar-free apricot preserve

- 8 pitted prunes

- 1 tablespoon rum

- 1 teaspoon vanilla

Production:

Core the apples and place them in a baking dish.  Drop a teaspoon of jam at the heart of each apple and insert a prune in the center.  Bake at medium heat for 30 minutes, until tender.  Remove from the oven, place the apples in a serving dish.  There should be a fair amount of juice left in the bottom of the dish: this is the base for your syrup.

Syrup: in a small pot, pour the baking juice, add the vanilla and the rum.  Reduce on high heat until thickened but not caramelized.  Pour the syrup over the apples, making sure to fill the heart of each apple.  Do this slowly to give the apples time to absorb the liquid.

Nutrition Facts (for 1 apple)
Servings: 1 - Calories/serving: 80
Total Fat: 0g - Saturated: 0g - Monoinsaturated: 0g
Cholesterol: 0mg

Until next meal

Domino Nini