Try Lesley Waters' baked apples with a twist as an ideal accompaniment to her flat ham pie.
Ingredients
6 large dessert apples
55g / 2oz unsalted butter
2 tablespoons finely chopped sage
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons demerara sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
150ml / ¼ pint dry cider
freshly ground black pepper
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 200C / 400F / Gas Mark 6.
2. Using a corer, remove the core of each apple. Then using a sharp knife, score a ring around the centre of each apple to stop then bursting during cooking. Transfer to an ovenproof dish.
3. In a small bowl, mix together the butter, sage, garlic and sugar and season with pepper. Spoon the sage butter into the cavity of each apple and sprinkle a little sugar over the apples.
4. Pour the cider into the dish around the apples. Bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes until soft all the way through but still maintaining their shape. Serve with flat ham pie.