Wassail

Shared by Jed Proujansky of Northfield

Core and bake a dozen apples. I use Cortlands or some apple that does not turn to mush (definitely not Macs). I peel and core the apples, trying not to go through the bottom so I have a hole to put in the liquid. I fill each of the holes in the apple half way to the top with maple syrup. Sprinkle cinnamon and nutmeg on top of the apple, put into a glass baking dish and put in about ¼” of water on the bottom of the pan. Bake in a 350˚ oven until soft. As the apples cook, some of the liquid escapes the center of the apples and mixes with the spices and water to make a nice syrup. Set aside the baked apples. They can be cooked in advance and should be at room temp or warmer when serving.

Heat up 4 bottles of sherry or Madeira. I prefer dry sherry as there is a lot of sweetness throughout the rest of the recipe. Bring it to a near boil, but do not boil.

Combine in a saucepan and boil for 5 minutes:

1 cup water
4 cups sugar
1 tablespoon fresh grated nutmeg
2 teaspoons ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground mace
6 whole cloves
6 allspice berries
1 stick cinnamon

Beat until stiff, but not dry:

1 dozen egg whites

Beat separately :

1 dozen egg yokes

In a large bowl fold in the egg whites into the yolks. Strain the spice mixture into eggs, combining quickly.

Now add the hot sherry into the spice and egg mixture beginning slowly and stirring briskly with each addition.  Immediately after this add 2 to 4 cups of brandy. Because there is so much sugar and sweetness there is no reason to spend money on the high quality brandy. A mid range priced brandy is more than sufficient. The recipe calls for 2 cups but 4 gives it a bit more of a kick.  If done right the mixture will foam up and make a nice show. This has little effect on the flavor so don’t worry if you don’t get any foaming. Now add the baked apples and syrup from the apples into the mixture and give it one last stir.