A tried and true recipe, Tufahije are the perfect end to any meal. While I don’t remember eating them often growing up, they were a staple in every Balkan pastry shop I visited and they were sometimes served when we went over to someone’s house for dinner or as a special treat. Simple to make, and so refreshing and delicious, this is a recipe you want to add to your Balkan recipe arsenal.
Tufahije are apples poached in sugar syrup, stuffed with a walnut filling, and served with whipped cream on top. They are a Bosnian dessert but can be found all over the Balkans, most notably in Serbia, Croatia, and Macedonia. The Ottoman influence is evident here with the use of a sugar syrup to poach them as is common with Bosnian desserts. The filling ingredients vary, and you’ll experience different variations depending on where you’re sampling this dessert. The variation I’ve outlined below is something I’ve personally found to be to our taste and I hope you decide to give it a try. A few ingredients and you have yourself a very simple and easy treat.
One thing I want to mention here is the type of apple I use. I’ve attempted to make these with a few different varities of apples and have found the Golden Delicious variety to work best. Others I’ve tried were too mealy and ended up breaking apart no matter how briefly I poached them. The Golden Delicious variety held up every time and so that’s my apple of choice for this recipe. Always look for ones with as little bruising as possible. This way, you can be sure you won’t have dark spots on the flesh when it’s time to serve them.
I hope you give these a try very soon!
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Tufahije/Stuffed Apples
Course: DessertCuisine: Bosnian, Balkan4
servings30
minutes10
minutesA simple yet traditional recipe for stuffed apples.
Ingredients
4 Golden Delicious apples
2 cups (473 ml) water
1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
2 cups (250 g) ground walnuts
1 cup (125 g) ground Plazma (Lane) biscuits
1 tablespoon vanilla sugar (1 kesica)
1/2 cup (118 ml) milk, hot
Whipped cream
Directions
- In a pot large enough to fit all 4 apples pour in the water, lemon juice, and add the granulated sugar. Cook on medium-low heat until the sugar melts completely is the water starts to lightly boil. If it achieves a rapid boil reduce the heat so it is simmering.
- While the water and sugar are heating up, peel and core your apples. Make sure no seeds remain inside and widen the middle to ensure a generous amount of filling will fit inside each apple.
- When the water comes to a boil, arrange the peeled apples inside the pot right side up. Poach them until the bottom starts to soften, then flip them upside down so the firm, top portion, is now in the liquid. Cook the apples until they soften just slightly, about 20 minutes or so. They should have a “give” when you squeeze the sides in gently but should not be too soft where they are falling apart.
- Once the apples have slightly softened, remove them from the pot onto a plate. Set aside and turn off the heat. Do not discard the syrup. Allow to cool completely and then chill until ready to serve dessert.
- Allow the apples to cool slightly and then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 20-30 minutes until chilled completely.
- Once the apples are chilled, combine the Plazma biscuits, walnuts, and vanilla sugar in a bowl. Heat the milk until boiling and then pour over the biscuit and walnut mixture. Stir to combine. The filling should be the consistency of wet sand, damp but not runny. If your filling is runny, add additional biscuits or walnuts.
- Next, stuff each apple with the prepared filling and refrigerate until ready to serve.
- Serve each apple in a small bowl. Ladle a spoonful or two of syrup over the top, and top with whipped cream. Sprinkle ground walnuts lightly over the top and enjoy cold.
