Apples and candy bars are pretty much at opposite ends of the snacking spectrum, but sometimes opposites can work together in surprising ways to create something great. These Candy Bar-Stuffed Baked Apples are a lot like that. They are tender, oven-roasted apples that are stuffed with candy bars before baking so that they have a gooey, warm, indulgent filling when you cut them open.
The inspiration for the apples came from a chocolate and caramel covered candy apple that I had recently. The sweet coating was a great contrast with the sweet-tart apple inside. This baked apple is like an inside out caramel apple, where the candy is packed at the center of the fruit instead of wrapped around it. I used leftover snack-sized Halloween candy bars as my filling, stuffing them into the center of the cored apples. The candy bars hold up well during baking and just about all of my filling stayed inside of my apples.
My personal preference on these apples was to use Milky Way or Snickers’ type candy bars. The peanuts from the Snickers added some nice texture, and worked with the caramel apple theme because those apples are often dipped in nuts. The Milky Way seemed to have more caramel and the nougat was nice when it was warm. Milk chocolate seems to be a bit better than dark chocolate for me. Experiment a little bit with whatever candies you have – because I suspect a peanut butter and chocolate candy bar would be delicious – but I don’t think you could go wrong with either of these two.
The peels of the apples can become fairly tough during baking, but they give baked apples a much nicer finished look than completely peeled apples have. I usually cut some shallow vertical slits in the peel with my knife (as though I were going to cut the apple into sections), which leaves the skin intact, but makes the apple easier to eat when it is ready. Baking time will vary depending on the type of apples that you have and how large they are. Check the apples for doneness by poking them with the tip of a sharp knife. When the apples are tender, they are ready to eat. Serve them as-is, or with vanilla ice cream.
Candy Bar-Stuffed Baked Apples
4 medium sized apples
8 “fun size” candy bars (or equivalent), such as Snickers or Milky Way
2 tbsp butter, melted
4 tbsp brown sugar
coarse salt
Preheat oven to 425F.
Core each of the apples. Cut off a small portion of the base of the apple to ensure that they have a flat base to sit on and won’t roll around.
Place apples in a square baking dish. Stuff each apple with 2 “fun size” candy bars (or however many will fit, depending on the size of your apples). Pack the candy bars down a bit, but they should come up to the top of the apple.
Brush apples with melted butter. Top each with 1 tbsp brown sugar and a generous sprinkle of coarse salt.
Bake for about 20 minutes, or until apples are tender when pricked with the tip of a sharp knife.
Allow apples to cool for 3-4 minutes, then transfer them to serving plates using a spatula.
Makes 4.
What do you think?