Every fall there’s a time when the air turns sharp, the windows fog, and the only sensible response is to turn on the oven. These baked apples with sausage stuffing were made for that morning (or any time of day). Hollow out whole apples, pack them with browned sausage, sweet onion, dried currants, and sage, then bake them in a bath of reduced apple cider until tender, glossy, and fragrant enough to coax anyone out from under a down comforter.
The recipe comes from four-time James Beard Award winner Cheryl Alters Jamison, a TABLE contributing editor and the author of 20 cookbooks, including Tasting New Mexico and The Border Cookbook. It’s a savory twist on a dessert many of us grew up with: Instead of brown sugar and cinnamon, the apples are filled with protein-rich sausage, which makes them hearty enough for a warm breakfast, satisfying as an afternoon snack, and elegant enough to serve as a side dish next to roast pork or chicken. This is a great recipe for peak apple season in September and October, when apples will have the most flavor packed into each juicy bite.
What Are the Best Apples for Baking?
Cheryl reaches for Rome Beauty, a classic baking apple with a sturdy shape and a mild, sweet-tart flavor. Other excellent options include Braeburn, Cortland, Honey Gold, Jonathan, Fuji, Gala, Granny Smith, Haralson, and Newtown Pippin. These varieties turn soft and tender in the oven but keep their structure instead of collapsing into applesauce. Granny Smith brings the most tartness, a welcome contrast to rich sausage, while Fuji and Gala lean sweeter and more mellow.
Timing and variety make all the difference. September and October are peak apple season, when fruit at orchards and farmers markets is at its juiciest and most flavorful. Look for large, well-shaped apples with flat bottoms that stand upright on their own.
How Do You Make Sausage Stuffed Apples?
Start with the cider. Boiling two cups down by half concentrates its natural sweetness into a light, syrupy glaze that bastes the apples as they bake. While it reduces, prepare the fruit.
Cheryl’s coring trick is also worth remembering: skip the apple-coring gadget and use the small end of a melon baller. It lets you scoop out the core while leaving the bottom of each apple intact, so the filling stays put, and carve a cavity just slightly bigger than the core itself. Slicing a thin ribbon of peel from around the top of each opening keeps the skin from splitting in the oven. Don’t toss the fruit clinging to the cores; trim it off, chop it, and add it to the stuffing.
For the filling, sauté the chopped apple, onion, currants, dried sage, and sausage in butter until the meat browns and crisps in a few spots. A smoky or sage-scented sausage delivers the most flavor. Mound the mixture into the apples, nestle them in a buttered cast-iron skillet, and pour the reduced cider over and around them. Bake covered for 30 minutes, then uncovered for about 15 more, until a knife tip slides in easily but the apples still hold their shape.
Tips for Success
Choose apples of similar size. Apples that match bake at the same rate, so each comes out of the oven tender at the same time.
Let the filling cool briefly. A few minutes off the heat makes the sausage mixture easier to pack and keeps hot fat from softening the apples before they bake.
Baste after uncovering. When the lid comes off, spoon the reduced cider over the tops so they turn glossy and lightly caramelized.
Can I Make This Baked Apple Recipe Ahead of Time?
Cook the sausage filling and reduce the cider up to a day in advance, then refrigerate them separately. Core and stuff the apples just before baking so the flesh doesn’t brown. Leftovers keep, covered and refrigerated, for up to three days; reheat them in a 350°F oven with a splash of cider.
Why Are My Baked Apples Mushy?
The culprit is usually the variety or the timing. Soft eating apples, such as McIntosh or Red Delicious, break down quickly in the oven, so stick with the firm baking varieties above. Start checking the apples a few minutes before the timer goes off; they’re ready when a knife tip slides in easily but the walls still stand tall. If a skin splits, the cavity may have been carved too wide or the peel ribbon skipped. The apple will still taste delicious, so spoon any escaped stuffing back on top and serve.
What Can I Serve With Savory Baked Apples?
Serve each apple warm in a small bowl with a generous spoonful of the pan juices and a sprig of fresh sage. For brunch, pair them with soft scrambled eggs, a wedge of sharp cheddar, or buttered toast to soak up the cider. At dinner, they make a striking side for pork chops, roast chicken, or a holiday turkey.
Cheryl’s Baked Baby Pumpkins are another showstopping stuffed-and-roasted dish, and her Pumpkin-Stuffed Ravioli with Brown Butter, Sage, and Hazelnuts celebrates the same earthy sage that perfumes these apples.
For a lighter side dish, try her Roasted Pumpkin Salad with Chèvre, Pomegranates, and Pepitas.
Building a holiday table? Pair the apples with Cheryl’s Ultimate Stuffing Recipe or Anna Franklin’s Bread Pudding Stuffed Squash with Savory Black Truffle.
When it turns colder, simmer something from our Stew Recipes to Warm Your Heart This Fall and Winter, or browse seasonal favorites in our Fall recipes and Breakfast and Brunch collections.
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Baked Apples with Sausage Stuffing
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 6 stuffed apples 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Savory baked apples stuffed with browned sage sausage, onion, currants, and chopped apple, then baked in reduced apple cider until tender. A hearty fall breakfast, snack, or side dish.
Ingredients
- 2 cups apple cider
- 6 large, well-shaped baking apples, such as Rome Beauty
- 4 tbsp (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for the skillet
- 1 heaping cup chopped onions
- 2 tbsp dried currants
- 1/2 tsp crumbled dried sage
- 1/2 lb raw full-flavored sausage, preferably a smoky or sage-scented variety, crumbled or chopped
- Fresh sage sprigs, optional, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Butter a cast-iron skillet or deep baking dish large enough to hold the apples upright with up to an inch between them.
- Pour the cider into a saucepan and reduce it by half over high heat.
- While the cider cooks, scoop out the apple cores, leaving the bottoms intact. The small end of a melon baller works better than an apple corer. Scoop a hole in each apple just a bit bigger than needed to remove the core. Slice a thin ribbon of peel from around the top of each cavity to keep the peel from splitting while baking. Slice off any fruit remaining on the cores and chop it.
- Warm the butter in another skillet or sauté pan over medium heat. Stir in the chopped apple, onion, currants, sage, and sausage. Cook until the sausage is brown and crispy in a few spots. Remove from the heat and cool briefly.
- Pack equal portions of the mixture into each apple cavity, mounding it slightly over the top. Arrange the apples in the prepared skillet. Pour the reduced cider over and around the apples.
- Cover and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake about 15 minutes longer, until the apples can be pierced easily with a knife tip but still hold their shape.
- Arrange the apples in small bowls and spoon the pan juices over them. Serve warm, garnished with sage sprigs, if you wish.
Notes
- Best apples for baking: Rome Beauty, Braeburn, Cortland, Honey Gold, Jonathan, Fuji, Gala, Granny Smith, Haralson, and Newtown Pippin hold their shape in the oven.
- Make ahead: Cook the filling and reduce the cider up to 1 day ahead; refrigerate separately. Core and stuff the apples just before baking.
- Dairy-free: Replace the butter with olive oil or plant-based butter, and check the sausage label for milk-based binders.
- Storage: Refrigerate leftovers, covered, up to 3 days. Reheat at 350°F with a splash of cider.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 stuffed apple
- Calories: 380
About the Recipe Author
Cheryl Alters Jamison | Contributing Editor. This four-time James Beard award-winner moved from the Midwest to the Southwest more than 40 years ago, in search of chile-laced food and ski slopes. Her 20 cookbooks include Tasting New Mexico, The Rancho de Chimayó Cookbook, and The Border Cookbook. She works with Hutton Broadcasting, hosting the weekly food radio show, Heating it Up. Read more of her recipes at TABLE.
About the Photographer
Tira Howard is a Contributing Editor for TABLE Magazine New Mexico. Tira thrives on creating images at the intersection of food and fashion. The beauty of food and the people who feed us is endlessly inspiring to her and guides her photography into the realm of emotion and storytelling.
About the Stylists
Keith Recker is Editor in Chief and Co-Owner of TABLE Magazine, directing coverage of food and drink, design, fashion, travel, and the arts across its Pittsburgh and New Mexico editions. A color and trend forecaster for clients including Pantone and WGSN, he is the author of three books on color and craft, most recently Deep Color: The Shades That Shape Our Souls. Read Keith’s articles.
Julia Platt Leonard is Regional Editor of TABLE Magazine New Mexico, covering Northern New Mexico’s food, design, shopping, and community. A graduate of the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts, she worked as a pastry chef and bread baker for chef Todd English, and wrote about food for The Independent.
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