Tea Poached Apples with Calvados Mascarpone

PARTNER POST: Discover new ways to incorporate seasonal teas into your holiday cooking and desserts with Celestial Seasonings.
For an elegant winter or holiday dessert, these Calvados Mascarpone Topped Tea Poached Apples are a divine.

Poached fruit is a healthier dessert for this holiday season when decadence is the norm. Having a flavorful poaching liquid is key and this one is magnificent. With honey for sweetness, white wine for a key depth of flavor, a cinnamon stick, a vanilla bean and one surprise ingredient make it a winner. I had one of Celestial Seasonings‘ Holiday Teas in my pantry. Their Nutcracker Sweet is a hand crafted black tea with “creamy, nutty vanilla and a pinch of cinnamon,” capturing the magic of the classic holiday ballet, The Nutcracker Suite! It adds a certain je ne sais quoi, a mysterious, delicious undertone to this lovely dessert.

As I developed this recipe, I explored which apple varieties would work best. Golden Delicious were just too soft after poaching. Tasty, but impossible to slice nicely. Besides being flavorful, Granny Smith and Honeycrisp apples kept their shape making them ideal for fanning. You’ll want to start cutting just below the stem end and make four almost parallel slices. It’s imperative not to slice all the way through so you can spread out the segments for an attractive presentation. Then you can garnish to make it fancy-dancy, with a dollop of spiked (or not) mascarpone cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

Tea Poached Apples with Calvados Mascarpone

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• Author: Liz Berg
• Total Time: 40 minutes
• Yield: Serves 2
• Diet: Omnivore

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Description

Elegant poached apples infused with black tea and white wine, topped with a luscious Calvados mascarpone cream. A divine winter dessert!

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 2 apples (473 ml) apples
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 cups (237 ml) boiling water
• 1 bag Celestial Seasonings Nutcracker Sweet Black Tea bag
• 0.5 cups (118 ml) dry white wine
• 6 tbsp honey
• 0.5 vanilla bean
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 0.5 cups (118 ml) mascarpone cheese
• 2 tsp sugar
• 0.25 tsp vanilla bean paste
• 1-2 tsp Calvados
• Ground cinnamon

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Instructions

1. Gently toss apples with lemon juice in a large bowl and set aside.
2. Prepare the poaching liquid by combining boiling water and a tea bag; steep for one minute.
3. In a medium saucepan, combine tea, wine, and honey. Scrape seeds from inside of a vanilla bean and add the bean and seeds, along with cinnamon, to the saucepan.
4. Heat over medium until the honey dissolves.
5. Carefully add the apples to the saucepan and cover with a round of parchment paper.
6. Reduce heat to a gentle simmer and cook for 15 minutes, gently turning the apples once halfway through.
7. Remove the apples to a large bowl.
8. Reduce the poaching liquid to ¾ cup by cooking for a few more minutes.
9. Cool the syrup and pour it over the apples.
10. Cover the apples and refrigerate for at least 8 hours.
11. Before serving, whip mascarpone cheese with sugar, vanilla bean paste, and Calvados.
12. Add ¼ cup of poaching liquid and whip until soft peaks form.
13. To serve, thinly slice apples lengthwise from just below the stem, leaving the apple attached at the stem end.
14. Fan apples over individual serving plates and serve with a dollop of mascarpone cream, a drizzle of syrup, and a sprinkle of cinnamon (optional).

Notes

• For a stronger tea flavor, steep the tea bag in the boiling water for 2-3 minutes before adding it to the poaching liquid.
• If you don’t have Calvados, you can substitute with a similar amount of apple brandy or even a teaspoon of apple extract.
• To prevent browning, ensure apples remain submerged in the poaching liquid during cooking. Store leftover poached apples and syrup separately in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 25 minutes
• Category: Dessert
• Method: Poaching
• Cuisine: French-Inspired

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 apple half
• Calories: 300
• Sugar: 30
• Sodium: 20
• Fat: 20
• Saturated Fat: 12
• Unsaturated Fat: 5
• Carbohydrates: 40
• Fiber: 5
• Protein: 4
• Cholesterol: 20

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