Let’s get the first question out of the way right now. Compôte means “mixture” in French, so 15-20: Apple Compôte is essentially fancy applesauce. Don’t even worry about exerting the effort to mash the apples–these are just syrupy slices.
Some of you might have thought of pie filling when you saw “compôte”–I know I did. There’s actually differences between jam, jelly, preserves, conserves, and compote–I still don’t know if this iteration matches up with their definition, but here’s a recipe from my same trusted source (Serious Eats/Stella Parks) for essentially the same thing we’re making here.
The TIPS section offers an almond meringue variation–I think if I were to make it again, I’d definitely include that suggestion. It could have used the additional flavor/texture of the crunchy/chewy meringue top.
And no, it’s not your screen–there was a kitty hair on the card when I scanned it, apparently.
Ingredients. The store I was at didn’t have Calvados, so I bought applejack instead. It’s essentially the American version of Calvados (using different apples), and happened to be a favorite of George Washington. 🍎🇺🇸 I had one packet of powdered apple cider left, so into this recipe it went.
Made the apple cider in a measuring cup, and spiked it with a little extra applejack since the packet technically only made 8 oz (instead of 12).
No pictures of the apples being sliced (you can imagine it), but here they are stacked up (messily) in a big Pyrex container to be baked.
Toasting the sliced almonds on a sheet pan. If yours aren’t already toasted (mine weren’t), 5-10 minutes in a 350ºF oven should do it.
I cut a piece of wax paper to fit the baking container, and put it on top of a sheet pan with a Silpat to keep it from sliding around (and make it easier to retrieve from the oven after baking).
Final picture–it’s not that exciting, unfortunately. But, it IS vegan, and a pretty classic dish. If you have a lot of apples and some brandy/cider laying around, here’s an OK way to use them up.
Grade: B
