Celebrating 5 Years of Apple & Spice with Roasted Apple & Custard Pots

I can’t believe it’s been 5 years since I stared this blog! At the time it began I was a student sitting in my attic bedroom and thought writing a food blog would be ‘a bit of fun’ I never dreamed 5 years down the lines it would still go going. Along the way I have ‘met’ so many lovely people and learned so many new recipes and techniques that I really don’t think I would be the same person I am today without it. A lot of that is down to you, be your readers or fellow bloggers, so thank you!

Every blog anniversary I have always made an apple inspired recipe to celebrate.
1st year – Spiced Apple Cake

2nd year – Individual Apple & Oat Crumbles

3rd year – Overnight Spiced Apple Stack

4th year – Fruity Tea Loaf

And finally, this year I give you roasted apple and custard pots. Slices of baked apple underneath a thick, creamy layer of freshly made custard.

I used a combination of cooking and eating apples which resulted in a pleasing mix of slightly sweet and slightly sharp apple flavour with each bite. Some of apple was also soft and squishy while other slices retained a bit more of their structure. This combination of flavours and textures went really well against the thick creaminess of the custard.

The edges of the apple slices had become slightly toasted and caramelised during baking. When layered underneath the custard and allowed to chill for several hours, this created little pools of sticky caramel-like sauce amongst the apple which tasted delicious. You can’t beat the taste of real freshly made custard either.

So simple, quick and easy to prepare but a complete joy to eat. There is something so comforting and pleasing about the nursery combination of apple and custard, but sometimes the simplest things can be the best.

Roasted Apple & Custard Pots

Roasted Apples
2 large eating apples
1 large cooking apple
6 tsp soft brown sugar
15g butter

Custard
3 egg yolks
500ml milk
70g caster sugar
25g cornflour
1 tsp vanilla

Method
Preheat the oven to 190C.
Peel, core and slice the apples into thick slices. Lay them on a large baking tray, mixing the cooking and eating apple slices up. Scatter over the soft brown sugar. Dot small blobs of butter over the top and place in the oven to bake for 30 minutes. They should be soft and lightly caramelised around the edges.
Once baked, remove from the oven and leave to cool on the tray. Don’t try and move them too much when they are hot as they will stick more to the tray.
Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks, sugar and cornflour together in a bowl.
Heat the milk until simmering and then slowly pour over the top of the egg yolk mixture, whisking constantly.
Return the custard mix to the pan and stir over a low heat until beginning to thicken. Don’t try and rush and heat it too quickly or it could burn. It will take about 10 minutes. When thickened, remove from the heat and pour into a clean bowl. Stir in the vanilla and set aside to cool slightly. You want to use it still warm though.
Distribute the cool, baked apple slices between 6 glasses or ramekins, saving 6 slices for decoration. Some will be very mushy, but this if fine.
Pour the still warm custard mixture over the top and shake gently to smooth the surface. Lay a saved apple slice on top as decoration.
Place in the fridge to chill for at least 4 hours before serving.
Makes 6