Cinnamon Hasselback Apples

 

Have you ever made hasselback potatoes before? And on top of that, ever though of making a dessert version? These apples turn out fork tender with a cinnamon sugar crust on top that if gently tapped with your fork, makes a crunchy noise like fresh french bread. It has every great texture from chewy to soft and melt in your mouth, to crunchy and creamy. It is a great apple dessert and could easily take the place of pie for me (I am not a pie crust girl).

Ingredients:

2 firm, tart apples, peeled, cored and halved vertically
4 Tbs. brown sugar, divided
3 Tbs. butter, melted, divided
1 tsp. cinnamon, divided
2 Tbs. oats
1 tsp. flour
1/4 tsp. salt
*Vanilla frozen yogurt
*Caramel ice cream topping

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Starting at one end of one of the apple halves, cut slices about 3/4 of the way through, every 1/8th of an inch or so. Repeat for the other three apple halves. Place in an 8 inch baking pan that has been lined with tinfoil and sprayed with non stick cooking spray (non-sliced through side down). Meanwhile, in a small bowl combine 1 Tbs. brown sugar, 1 Tbs. butter and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon. Spoon over the apples and spread out so that it covers the entire top.

Cover with tinfoil and bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to bake for 10 minutes.  In a small bowl, combine the remaining 3 Tbs. brown sugar, 1 1/2 Tbs. butter, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, oats, flour and salt. Divide evenly among the tops of each apple and press gently so that the cinnamon mixture gets between the slices. Bake again in the oven for 10 minutes. Turn the broiler on high and broil for 2 minutes to get the tops nice and crunchy.

To send these over the edge, top with small scoops of vanilla frozen yogurt and caramel ice cream topping. The frozen yogurt will melt and create a great creamy sauce for the apples!