Savory Baked Apples

Often when you think of baked apples you may think of a delicious sweet recipe. The truth is that I loved baked apples when my grandmother cooked them and I loved the way the house always smelled when they were baking. I have now grown up and found a great new tasty recipe that allows the same great scent and a savory meal within a delicious apple.

4 tbs butter
2 tbs olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 ribs of celery, chopped
4 Italian sausages, removed from casings
1/4 cup crushed walnuts
6 sage leaves, chopped
leaves from 2-3 fresh thyme sprigs
1 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
6 apples (Mine were pretty big)
Parsley for garnish


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat 2 tbs of the butter and the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the onions and celery.  Cook stirring often until they are soft, about 5 minutes. Add the sausage to the pan and mix until the meat is broken up and no longer pink.  Add the herbs, bread crumbs, nuts and cheese.  Mix well.
Cut off the top third of each apple. Using a small spoon scrape out the center removing the core and the seeds, and just enough of the flesh to make a nice hollow for the stuffing. (Be sure not to overly scrape out the apple, otherwise they will fall apart in the oven!)  Fill each apple with the stuffing and put a small dot of the remaining butter on each apple.
Bake the apples until the flesh is tender and the stuffing is golden brown.  About 45 minutes to an hour. Garnish with parsley and serve. 

recipe source here