Preheat oven to 375°F. Rinse and dry apples.

Core apples, taking care to remove all pith and seeds. Cut about 1/4 inch off the bottom of each apple so it can stand upright on the baguette slice while cooking.

Score apples about one-third of the way down, cutting through skin (no more than 1/4 inch deep) and drawing the incision all the way around. As the apples cook, the flesh will expand and the part above this cut will rise, almost like the cap of a mushroom.

Arrange baguette slices in a gratin dish or baking dish that can second as a tabletop serving dish. Place an apple on top of each baguette slice.

Place one teaspoon butter and one teaspoon brown sugar in the cored hole of each apple. Mix together apricot jam and maple syrup and pour into cored hole, allowing mixture to spill over and coat the apples. Sprinkle one tablespoon chopped nuts and a pinch of cinnamon or freshly grated nutmeg over each apple.

Bake for 30 minutes.

Baste apples and cook for another 30 minutes.

Spoon some of the juice from the baking dish over the apples and let cool to lukewarm before serving. Garnish with a sprig of mint.

Serve as is, or celebrate your apple creation by adding whipped cream, crème fraîche, or ice cream.