Hack Your Way To More Delicious Ice Cream With An Apple Bowl

There's nothing like the dessert magic of a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top of a warm apple pie. But what if you could recreate this magical bite without baking a whole pie at all? If you're looking to up your go-to after-dinner treat of a scoop of ice cream in a simple ceramic bowl, all it takes is a little bit of TLC with an apple to create the perfect edible vessel. Your next bowl of ice cream will never be the same.

Creating an apple bowl is as simple as cutting into an apple and removing most of the inside of the fruit to create space for your scoop of ice cream. A fresh, raw apple works perfectly fine for your ice cream bowl, but you can take the flavor to the next level by baking your apple beforehand. After it cools down, you'll have a beautifully caramelized apple bowl just waiting for its perfect match: Ice cream!

A delicious, sturdy apple bowl starts with the size, shape, and variety of apples you choose. A large apple with a full, rounded shape is necessary, as it needs to be able to stand up on its own when holding the ice cream. As for specific apple varieties to use, you can turn to classic baking apples that you'd use for a homemade apple pie. Golden Delicious, Granny Smiths, and Honeycrisps are always great options that should hold up when baked. Choose your favorite based on the level of tartness or sweetness you enjoy the most.

Thoroughly wash and dry the apple first, then it's time to get to slicing. You can cut the apple in one of two ways: Slice off the top and take a melon scooper or sturdy spoon to hollow out the insides. Or if you have a particularly large apple, you can cut it in half horizontally and have a wider opening to hollow it out. If you're choosing to bake your apple, slather it first in butter and brown sugar and bake for about 15 to 20 minutes at 375 degrees Fahrenheit. You could even sprinkle in some cinnamon, too. And if you want to get even closer to imitating an apple pie, you can cover the apple with puff pastry to line your apple bowl with a pie crust.

Once your apple bowls have been baked, leave them untouched to cool down slightly so they don't lose their shape. You can scoop in your ice cream, grab a spoon, and call it a day, but why not add a few toppings to take this  creation even further? Caramel and apples are a match made in heaven, so you can't go wrong with some caramel sauce. Drizzle the baked apple bowls in caramel sauce, add in your ice cream, and drizzle a little more caramel sauce on top. You'll have caramel-coated heaven in every bite, even when it's time to devour your edible apple bowl!

You could also stick to classic apple pie toppings like a dollop of whipped cream, or bring a little extra crunch with a handful of crushed pecans. And if you didn't add any cinnamon earlier, why not sprinkle a bit of cinnamon sugar on top of the ice cream bowl now? Caramel, cinnamon, and vanilla-based ice creams pair best with apples, but in this dessert heaven, there are no rules. As long as you start with a great type of baking apple, you can fill your ice cream apple bowl to your heart's delight!