Baked Apple Basket

Place a large bowl face down and cover it with two sheets of aluminum foil. Sprinkle flour over the dough and then cut it into 8 equal parts. Roll 4 parts under your hands to make them thinner and cut them in half. Arrange the strands of dough vertically on the overturned mixing bowl at regular intervals, making them meet in the center. Refrigerate. Roll out the remaining portions on the work surface to make them as long and thin as possible. Take one of the strands and pass it under the dough strands on the bowl, then continue by wrapping it around the strands while passing it under them, until you reach about ten centimeters from the bottom of the bowl. Fold the excess dough over the braiding to form a basket. Bake in the oven at 350°F for 10 minutes.

Braid the remaining dough strands together along their entire length. Cut the braid in half. Place another mixing bowl upside down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and wrap one of the braids around the bottom of the bowl. Then, place the other braid vertically on top of the bowl so that it meets the braided bottom and forms a handle. Bake in the oven at 350°F for 10 minutes.

Remove the basket from the aluminum foil and place it back in the mixing bowl, right side up. Bake in the oven at 350°F for 25 minutes. Cut off the tops of 4 apples and slice each one into 9 equal wedges, starting from the center. Place the apple slices in a saucepan with 3 tbsp of butter and 3 tbsp of brown sugar, and stir. Add 3 tbsp of water and simmer. Once the apples are caramelized, strain the caramel with a sieve. To prepare the caramel, gradually add 6 tbsp of sugar and 3 tbsp of butter to a saucepan and stir.

Core the apples using an apple corer and then peel them. Cut them into cubes and place them in a saucepan with the remaining brown sugar, the seeds of the vanilla pod, and the pod itself. Allow the mixture to simmer until it forms a compote.

Reassemble the apple wedges to reconstruct the apple tops. Pour the caramel onto a sheet of parchment paper to form circles the size of the apple tops, and place the tops on them. Pour the remaining caramel from the caramelized apples into a pan, add the remaining sugar, and 2 cups of water. Let it boil to obtain a syrup. Core the remaining apples, slice them thinly, and place them in the syrup. Drain the slices. Fill the basket with the apple compote, then place the 4 apple tops on top. Arrange 5 apple slices around each apple top to encircle them. Add the handle to the basket.

Melt the dark chocolate. Roll a sheet of parchment paper into a cone and pour the melted chocolate into it. Then, draw 4 stems on a sheet of parchment paper and place it in the freezer. Decorate each apple top with a mint leaf and a stem. Add 5 scoops of caramel ice cream, serve and enjoy!