Just pulled a pan of six baked apples out of the oven.

[John Schmidt]

I was in the shower and could already smell them, couldn't wait to get done in there. Pulled them out and my-oh-my, my tongue is about to beat my brains out wanting to get at them. It's one of my favorite dishes to make, turns out it now one of Nancy's as well. She couldn't wait and burned her tongue digging in before they cooled enough to eat. There's a shop in Green Bay called The Apple Store, not for electronic  junk but apples and cherry goodies of all kinds from an orchard north of here. I use Cortland apples, they're quite large and bake up great. So, excuse me but they're now cool enough...I'll cool them more with a scoop of vanilla. 

[h13man]

The old saying goes, no pic's didn't happen. 

[John Schmidt]

OK...here ya go. One apple isn't missing, I know right where it is. The apples are all 3" in diameter or nearly so. A cup of hot chocolate and the apple makes a nice evening meal. Once done, the meat is soft but not mushy and the skin is soft as well. I usually mix up a small bowl of brown sugar, craisons or raisons, cinnamon, and crushed walnuts(put them in a sandwich bag and use a rolling pin). After coring the apples, I stuff the centers with the mixture and top with butter which melts and runs down into the center mixture. I usually add about 3/4 cup of water, bake at 375 for 45 minutes. With all the juices that are created, it all mixes with the water which thickens it and makes for a great topping for the ice cream I have with the apple when it comes to eating. All calorie free! 

[Jess from VA]

Yum.

Although that picture is a reasonable facsimile to roasted eyeballs or navels.   

[cookiedough]

tons of good apple orchards in WI for sure.  I planted 6 apple trees in my backyward this year, 2 zestar early big apple, 2 crimson crisp firmer keep longer best flavor, and 2 honey crisp trees, along with 2 bartlett pear trees.  We visit locally 2-3 orchards within 50 miles of my house during the summer every month or so and buy 40lbs. of apples each time out.  So,  am hoping 2nd year we get a few blossoms and apples but heard 3rd year is when they take off are only 6-8 foot trees so will be awhile. 

This spring want to plant 4 honeyberry bushes ( 2 of each to cross pollinate early in June) heard they are GREAT like a blueberry and raspberry but bigger and more hardy and more producing, if can find the 2 varieties I want being Borealis and Aurora. 

cheapest that I know of apple orchard in all of WI is called Cains Orchard in Hixton WI just off I-90 past Black River Falls past Osseo.   Best cooking apple as you already know is Cortland, which Cains has along with honey crisp, etc.,  they cook down well and have good flavor, IMO.   Best eating apples we planted IMO being honeycrisp, crimson crisp, and zestar. 

Wife makes a GREAT apple crisp with brown sugar and oatmeal on top of what we do every year is freeze 1 gallon bags of cooked up mixture of apples, mostly Cortlands get at Cains dirt cheap, and others, then take out of freezer throughout the year.  Basically frozen apple pie filling which keeps in freezer gallon zip lock bags for 1 year or so.

[LadyDraco]

Looks  good John..
All the bears got ALL the  apples this  past year ,
Them Buggers didn't leave  me  1  apple  out of 80 Trees

[John Schmidt]

Tracy, a true story about a nephew. Among other other fruit trees, he planted a few cherry trees and once they started to produce the birds would almost clean him out every year. When visiting him a few years back I asked how his cherry trees were doing, was he still being bothered with birds. "Nope, got it under control. Go stand under one of the trees and I'll demonstrate." So I did and suddenly I heard this horrendously loud chorus of multiple loud farts. With that, all the birds present went flying. Seems he had hung three different remotely operated fart machines in front of a microphone and ran it through an amp and out to 3 or 4 speakers hung in the trees. Since the sound always changed the birds didn't become used to it and thereby ignore it. At one point he had a couple motion sensors hung out there that automatically would trigger the sound, but it drove him nuts on windy days. He still has it operating, but only when he triggers it. They have three boys, all adults and well into their careers in their thirties and older. Once during a family gathering, they decided it would be fun to add their own "touch" to the sound effects...much to the dismay of their mother and wives. I'm told it took a while to clear the air...so to speak!   Ingenuity reigns supreme at times.