Baked Apples With Ginger and Cranberries

1. 1

   Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

2. 2

   Use nonstick cooking oil spray to lightly grease a baking dish that is just large enough to hold the apples without crowding.

3. 3

   Combine the cranberries, ginger, brown sugar, vanilla extract and salt in the bowl of a food processor.

4. 4

   Pulse for about 30 seconds, until the mixture is finely chopped.

5. 5

   Use a corer, spoon or melon baller to create a hollow vertical core in the center of each apple, being careful to remove all of the stem and seeds (core all the way through the bottoms).

6. 6

   Trim the bottoms of the apples as needed so they sit steadily in the baking dish.

7. 7

   Place the apples in the prepared baking dish.

8. 8

   Fill the cored center of each apple with the cranberry-ginger mixture, stuffing the filling inches Add enough water to come 1/4- to 1/2-inch up the side of the dish.

9. 9

   The apples will be sitting in a shallow pool of water.

10. 10

    Transfer the dish to the oven.

11. 11

    Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes, until the apples are tender.

12. 12

    Transfer the apples to a serving plate.

13. 13

    Pour the liquid from the baking dish into a small saucepan.

14. 14

    Cook over medium-high heat, allowing the liquid to boil until it turns into a light syrup; the timing will depend on how much water was in the dish, but it should take only a few minutes.

15. 15

    You want to end up with about 1/3 cup of light syrup.

16. 16

    Serve hot or warm, with 1 tablespoon of the syrup drizzled over the top of each apple.

* Per serving · 4 servings · Values may vary.