Baked Apples with Spiced Ricotta and Maple Syrup

Another totally great treat from my on line friend, Boogie.
NEED:
4 medium Rome apples - cored
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 tablespoons maple syrup
3/4 heaping teaspoon fresh ginger
4 cinnamon stick
3/4 cup ricotta cheese, part skim milk
3 tablespoons confectioner's sugar
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons milk, 1% low fat


Heat oven to 350. Peel about one inch of skin from the top of the apples; cut a sliver off the bottom of the apples so they will stand. Place them in a 9 inch glass plate. Cut 1 tablespoon butter into 4 pieces; fill each apple core with a piece of butter, 1 tablespoon maple syrup, 1/8 teaspoon ginger, and one cinnamon stick. Place remaining 2 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons syrup in bottom of pie plate.
Bake, basting several times with pan juices, until apples are golden and tender, about 35 minutes. Transfer apples to a baking dish; let baking juices stand to thicken, about 15 minutes.
Puree ricotta, confectioner's sugar, remaining ginger, cinnamon, and milk in a blender. Serve ricotta "cream" with apples and drizzle with warm syrup.

ENJOY!

Roasting Pumpkin Seeds

Carving a jack-o'-lantern is a ritual in our house — we even have a set of tiny saws that were made for the task. Another part of the ritual: toasting the seeds. After scraping out all of the inside goop, rinse and pat dry the seeds, lay them out on a cookie sheet, sprinkle with salt and roast them in a 200 degree F oven for 1 hour until they smell nice and nutty.
Let cool and place in an airtight container for a quick snack later.

Enjoy!