Honey-Baked Apples with Chocolate

I know that this sounds like a strange combination but it works. There are only 3 ingredients in this low-fat, autumn-appropriate recipe by renowned chef Anne Willan, taken from her cookbook “In and Out of the Kitchen in Fifteen Minutes or Less.”

Ingredients:
- 4 medium apples
- 4 ounces semisweet chocolate
- 4 generous tablespoons of honey

Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Clean the apples and remove the cores. (If you don’t have an apple corer, plunge in with a vegetable peeler; many are designed to do the trick). With a sharp knife, cut the skin of each apple around the circumference so that they will not burst when baking. Break chocolate into bits and push down into the now-hollow core of each apple. Set the apples in a shallow baking dish and pour ½ cup water into the dish. Top each apple with a spoonful of honey and bake until tender, about 40-50 minutes. If the honey shows signs of scorching near the end of the cooking process, add more water to the pan. Serve while warm.

Editorial note: If the apples are a bit tipsy when set in the baking pan, remove a small slice from the bottom of the apples so that they can sit more firmly.