Tortine di Mele e Mandorle

Individual almond apple pies

This recipe for a delicious hot Italian pud comes from Gino D'Acampo. This serves 6, based on using quite large ramekins. I made twice as many using smaller ramekins (in this case cook them for about 30 minutes). I didn't hesitate at all before scoffing a second one though! I'm planning to try adapting this for peaches and/or apricots - the combination with the almonds would be delicious.

I cleverly forgot to add the butter when making this dessert - this still works perfectly for a lighter pud which goes more crunchy on the top while staying soft in the middle.

Ingredients

1.4kg cooking apples
100g soft brown sugar
200g ground almonds
200g soft salted butter (room temperature)
200g caster sugar
3 fresh eggs
sliced toasted almonds (for decoration)
icing sugar (for decoration)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 140° C (fan) / 160° C (conventional)
   
2. Cook the apple with the brown sugar on a low heat until soft.
   
3. Beat the eggs with the caster sugar, mix in the butter and ground almonds, creating a smooth paste.
   
4. Separate the apples into six (or 12 small) ramekins and spread the mixture on top of each of them.
   
5. Put some sliced almonds on top and cook for about 50 minutes (30 minutes for smaller ramekins) until golden brown. Once ready, dust on some icing sugar and serve immediately.