Spiced Apple Crème Brûlée

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Tear off sheets of foil, scrunch them up into rods, then form them into rings that the apples will sit on. Place these on top of a large baking sheet with a lip, spaced out 3-inches apart.

Crème brûlée without the caramelized sugar can be made days in advance and stored in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Add the reserved apple innards to a blender or food processor with ¼ cup of water (add more as needed). Blend until completely smooth. Add the apple puree to a small saucepan, along with the lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Cook on medium for 10 minutes or until the mixture is reduced by half. Set aside to cool.

Add the heavy cream and vanilla bean paste to a clean medium saucepan. Cook until simmering (185°F-205°F), then remove from heat.

In a large heat-proof bowl, beat the egg yolks and sugar together with a whisk or beaters until lightened in color and the mixture leaves a trail when the whisk is pulled up. Add ⅔ cup (160g) of the reduced apple puree, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves.

Slowly dribble in some of the warmed cream mixture into the egg yolk mixture, while whisking constantly. Continue this until all of the cream mixture is in the egg yolk mixture and whisked together thoroughly.

Divide this mixture evenly between the hollowed out apples. Do not overfill. Place the apples on the prepared foil collars on the baking sheet. Fill the baking sheet with boiling or very hot water* up to the top of the foil collars, but not touching the apples.

Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until centers are barely set and jiggly. The apples insulate the custard so it bakes slower than crème brûlée made in ramekins. If making this in ramekins, only bake for about 30 minutes. Cool completely. Refrigerate for at least four hours and up to a couple of days.

When ready to serve, sprinkle a very thin layer of granulated or caster sugar on top of the crème brûlée. Torch** this layer until melted and lightly caramelized. Sprinkle another even thin layer of sugar on top of this layer. Torch again until melted and lightly caramelized. I like to do 2-3 thin layers to achieve an even, crackable caramel.