Although it’s very elegant and completely delicious, this is actually a corner-shop standby pudding – the ingredients are all widely available. You can even buy the praline instead of making it – or use peanut brittle or sesame snaps.
Serves 4
For the salted walnut praline
100g granulated sugar
50g walnut halves, roughly broken up
½ teaspoon flaky sea salt
For the apples
3 medium, crisp dessert apples, such as Cox
30g butter
To serve
4 good scoops of vanilla ice cream
To make the praline, lightly oil a baking sheet (or line with baking parchment or a non-stick liner). Put the sugar into a heavy-based saucepan (ideally with a light interior, so you will be able to see the colour of the caramel). Place over a medium heat and heat, moving the sugar around a little with a spatula from time to time, until melted. Continue to cook until the melted sugar has turned to a golden caramel, watching it closely all the while. As soon as it has reached a deep golden brown, remove from the heat and sit the pan inside a bowl of cold water to stop the cooking, otherwise the caramel can start to burn very quickly. Stir in the walnuts with a fork and immediately pour on to the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle the salt over the top and leave to set.
When set, break the praline into small pieces by bashing it with a rolling pin. Store in an airtight container until needed.
Shortly before you are ready to serve, quarter the apples and remove their cores. Peel if you like. Cut each quarter into 2 or 3 wedges. Heat the butter in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the apples and fry gently for 10 minutes or so, turning now and again, until golden and tender but still retaining their shape.
To serve, divide the warm apples between individual plates, then top with a ball of ice cream and a liberal scattering of walnut praline. You may have a little left over, in which case store it in an airtight container until next time.