Soft apples with walnuts and cream are definitely on top of my comforting food for this fall! Vegan, gluten-free and ready in less than 30 minutes these apples are so delicious!

Autumn has finally revealed her self, among yellow leaves, walnuts falling on the ground and foggy mornings. It seems just yesterday that September arrived, and now we have fully stepped into October. Autumn is here, which means lots of fresh apples are starting to show on our markets. 

Apples are my favorite fruit, and I can't imagine a day without them (literally, I eat them at least once a day :)). Not to mention all the autumn baking that includes this wonderful fruit. Easy weekend cakes, cinnamon rolls, pies, or simply baked, apples always find their place in my kitchen!

Today I am bringing a special recipe that comes all the way from the Balkan countries, and calls for poached apples and walnuts. Tufahije (singular Tufahija) is a traditional Bosnian recipe, which is spread out through the whole Balkan and is one of the homemade desserts I would often eat as a child. Soft poached apples, walnut filling and cream on top, go so perfectly together and result in a delicious, elegant dessert you can enjoy throughout the whole year. 

There's nothing more that feels like home than preparing desserts from my mother's journals and adding walnuts to practically everything. If you ever go to any Balkan countries, you will notice how we love walnuts. From layer cakes to simple recipes like this one, you will often find them listed among the ingredients. 

For me, apples and walnuts make a perfect autumn symphony, and this simple recipe for poached apples confirms it. Soft apples, creamy walnut filling, and lots of cream on top, this dessert definitely goes on top of my autumn comforting food! 

Poaching apples is easy, but if you are making them for the first time, there are few things you should think of:

• Buy a few apples more just in case one overcooks or brakes during the cooking
• When coring the apples, make sure not to make the hole through the apple - you want to remove the seeds but not cut through the apple as in that way your walnut filling will stay in place
• Make sure not to overcook them - apples need ten minutes to soften. We need soft apples that will not break
• Don't throw away the water in which you cooked apples! We will be covering our apples with the remaining syrup later on (trust me on this one, you will thank me later:))

You can even poach the apples in advance as in that way, they will soak all the juices and be even more delicious. Serve them warm or room temperature, with regular cream (if not vegan) or coconut cream. A few tablespoons of the apple juice released during the cooking and a sprinkle of walnuts will give them extra taste and make them so good! This recipe is perfect when you have many people over for dinner, and you need something tasteful but easy at the same time.

My recipe is a vegan version as I use water instead of milk when making the walnut filling and coconut cream instead of regular whipping cream, but feel free to change. This recipe you can also find in the printed version of the latest issue of Origin Magazine, along with many other vegan recipes perfect for the Fall! 

Are you ready to give these delicious apples a try? 

Poached Apples with Walnuts and Cream
( Tufahije )
Marija Gvozdenovic

INGREDIENTS

Serves 8
Prep. time: 25 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes

8 larger apples (the best apples for this recipe are Golden or Red Delicious)

1l water for cooking the apples

200g sugar

Juice from one lemon

120g ground walnuts + some for decoration

3 tsp sugar for the walnut filling

70ml water for the walnut filling

Coconut whipped cream for decoration

METHOD

In a large pot, add sugar, water, and lemon juice. Bring to boil and simmer for a few minutes constantly stirring until all sugar is dissolved. Peel and gently core the apples, but make sure not to break them. Use a slice of lemon for brushing the apples before cooking. In this way, they will not turn brown. For this recipe, you will need whole apples. Add 3-4 apples to the simmering syrup and cook for about 5-10 minutes (depending on their size) or until they are soft enough to poke with a fork. If you have a large enough pan, you can also put all the apples together. Be careful while cooking them, as you don’t want to overcook them. The best way is to cook them for 5 minutes and then flip the sides. In this way, your apples will cook evenly and will not break.

In a smaller pan add water and sugar for the filling and cook on medium heat just for a few minutes, until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat, add walnuts and stir until combined. Once the apples are ready, put them on a serving plate and leave to cool. Preserve the liquid as we will use it later on.

When the apples cooled down, fill them with the walnut mixture and cover with a few spoons of remained syrup. This will make your apples more soft and tasty. Put them in the fridge until serving. Whip the coconut cream, decorate apples and sprinkle with some ground walnuts. Enjoy!