This recipe for oatmeal stuffed Baked Apples is going to fast become one of your favorite easy and healthy treats. Using your favorite baking apple, oats, cream cheese, and the surprise ingredient orange zest, you have a unique and delicious dessert. Serve alone or with some whipped cream for a delicious apple treat.
If you loved our baked apples, then I know you will adore my caramel apple sweet crepe recipe. It’s a delightful option for breakfast or dessert!
Oatmeal Stuffed Baked Apples Recipe
As soon as apple picking season hits, I am clamoring to fill up a bucket to bring home for delicious recipes like this one. Stuffing baked apples has become one of my favorite ways to turn a simple piece of fruit into an upscale dessert. This combination is not just the oatmeal you expect from a crisp, but a hint of cheesecake flavor as well. It’s such a perfect recipe to make and serve to guests! Being made so that each apple is an individual portion, it serves easily and beautiful at a dinner party.
My apple coleslaw with cranberry and my apple chutney with cranberries are both delicious options you can also make with those apples. They serve wonderfully at holiday meals, and are sure to wow guests with unique and delicious flavors.
Best Apples for Baking
When I think of making a stuffed baked apple, I almost always think of Granny Smith apples. They are, in my experience, the ultimate in baking apples. A sturdy texture with a flesh that is both tart and sweet, they make a great pie. Anytime I think of making a pie, I will grab those bright green apples.
For this recipe though, I prefer something that cooks a bit softer. So, using Honeycrisp, Gala, Fuji, or Jonagold apples is preferred. These are all sweeter apples that don’t need as much sugar added. When coring and stuffing them, you won’t have to worry about needing added sugar once they bake. When going for healthier desserts, that’s a must.
Can I Serve these Baked Cinnamon Apples with Ice Cream?
Yes! You already know that I love adding ice cream to my dessert recipes, so this is an obvious choice. A delicious scoop of vanilla bean ice cream is a great pairing with these apples. Remember though, if you are trying to cut fat and calories, you may prefer to skip this or not serve as much.
Instead of a scoop of ice cream with a whole apple, you could serve a half apple topped with 1/2 scoop of ice cream. You still get both of the flavors you love, but don’t have to worry about the calories nearly as much.
These baked apples are perfect for vanilla, caramel, coffee, or butterscotch ice creams. Caramel syrup, and/or whipped cream are other delicious options.
Ingredients
- Apples
- Quick oats
- Brown sugar
- Cinnamon
- Reduced-fat cream cheese
- Orange zest
- Vanilla extract
How to Make Baked Apples
Gather and prepare your ingredients. I like to measure all wet and dry ingredients ahead of time so they mix up easily when I am ready. For this recipe, you will also need to core the apples. A small kitchen apple corer is a great investment for recipes like this. You will scoop out part of the center of the apple but you will not cut all the way through.
Next, you will mix up your stuffing for the apples. This will be both dry and wet ingredients in different batches. Oats, brown sugar, and cinnamon are mixed in one bowl, while the cream cheese, orange zest, and vanilla are mixed together in a separate bowl.
Stuff each apple with the cream cheese mixture first, then top with the oatmeal mixture before baking.
Serve alone or with a drizzle of caramel syrup or scoop of ice cream.
Oatmeal Stuffed Baked Apples Recipe
Equipment
- Apple Corer
- Baking dish
Ingredients
- 4 apples
- 1/4 cup quick oats
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tbsp low-fat cream cheese
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F
- Core the apples and scoop out the centers, but do not cut all the way through
- In a small mixing bowl, combine the oats, brown sugar, and cinnamon.
- In another small mixing bowl, stir together the cream cheese, orange zest, and vanilla using a rubber spatula. (This is easy to do with a rubber spatula)
- Spoon 1 tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture into each cored apple, and fill it the rest of the way with the oat mixture. Do this for all 4 apples.
- Place the apples in a small baking dish and pour enough water to cover the bottom of the dish by about a centimeter.
- Loosely cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake again until the apples are very soft, an additional 25-30 minutes.
Nutrition
