Preheat oven to 180C.

Using a small sharp knife or an apple corer, remove cores from apples, leaving the apples whole and the bases intact.

With a knife, score a line right around the ‘waist’ of each apple.

Drizzle lemon juice into the holes in the apples.

Place the apples upright into a ceramic or pyrex baking dish.

Combine sultanas, vanilla essence, sugar, almonds and spice.

Spoon this mixture into the centre of each apple, packing it in.

Cover with foil. Bake for 15 minutes.

Remove foil and bake for a further 10 to 15 minutes or until apples are tender.

Serve warm with custard.

If the apples seem at all dried out you can drizzle with a little honey, maple syrup or golden syrup too.