Baked Apples with Spiced Ricotta and Maple Syrup

This comes from Martha Stewart Living. I loved this dessert. It's easy to make and the ricotta gives the sweet apples a little tang. As one dinner guest remarked, "It's like apple pie without the crust."

4 med. Rome apples core w/in 1/2-in of base (I used Pink Lady apples)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon grated ginger
4 sticks cinnamon
3/4 cup ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons +1 tsp confectioners' sugar (I was out of sugar so I used a few tbsp of Cool Whip)
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons heavy cream

Keep an eye on the apples while they're in the oven; baking times may vary.

Heat oven to 450°. Peel about 1 inch of skin from tops of apples; cut a sliver off the bottom so apples will stand. Place them in a 9-inch glass pie plate. Cut 1 tablespoon of butter into 4 pieces; fill each apple core with a piece of butter, 1 tablespoon maple syrup, 1/8 teaspoon ginger, and 1 cinnamon stick. Place remaining 2 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons syrup in bottom of pie plate.

Bake apples, basting several times with pan juices, until they are golden and tender, about 35 minutes (the skin may split). Transfer apples to a serving dish; let baking juices stand to thicken, about 15 minutes. (I cored the apples straight through since I couldn't figure out how to make it look nice by hacking out only part of the core. I also covered it with tin foil and didn't do any basting while it cooked.)

Puree ricotta, confectioners' sugar, remaining 1/2 teaspoon ginger, cinnamon, and cream in a food processor. Serve 2 heaping tablespoons of ricotta cream with each apple, and drizzle with the warm syrup.

Grade: A+