I’m not the biggest dessert fan, but when my daughter’s latest sweet-hustling campaign intersected with a ridiculously simple Instagram find, I couldn’t resist giving it a whirl.

After catching up with a friend at King’s Cross (who told me I looked like I’d just wandered out of a woodland clearing – fair enough, adversity will have you looking like you’ve been mountain climbing if you didn’t set out to do just that!), we shared a chocolate mousse after lunch. It was fine, memorable mainly for her attempts to speak Italian to the waiter, but it didn’t rock my world. It reminded me why I’m not usually fussed about desserts – unless they’re genuinely simple and delicious. Or unless my daughter’s involved, because she’s currently on a mission to extract sweets from me at every opportunity. I blame myself entirely: all those fruits and gooey chocolate doughnuts I devoured whilst pregnant clearly unlocked level max sweetness cravings, and the leftover credits have been passed straight on to her. I’m so close to going full Nara Smith and making everything from scratch just so I can say “we have homemade sweeties, my love” every time she spots something tempting in the shops.

This stream of consciousness made the cut because, well, we’re talking desserts!

The real spark for this recipe came from another friend who swears by their air fryer. They’ll happily leave it running whilst they pop out, only to return to a perfectly cooked meal. Meanwhile, I know people who would break into a cold sweat at the idea of leaving any device on unless it locked itself shut and blasted at 500°C. Which, as it turns out, is exactly what pyrolytic ovens do – some even reach 1000 degrees! #pyrocleanerovens

Anyway, air fryers came up in conversation, and I remembered seeing this apple dessert on Instagram from @oyinda_fitness. My daughter – currently finding clever new ways to hustle sweets out of me – was the perfect excuse. Our usual routine goes like this: she bargains for sweets, I lecture her about teeth, and we both end up laughing. After she’s given me the most dramatic, over-the-top teen TV show reaction of sadness, I tease laughter out of her. What a workout! This time, I gave in and decided to make us both a sweet treat.

The Dessert

• Core an apple.
• Sprinkle generously with cinnamon and drizzle with honey.
• Bake in the air fryer for 15–20 minutes until soft.
• Top with vanilla ice cream and another drizzle of honey.

I ate mine whole. She left the skin. (Still don’t know what her beef with apple skin is.)

I shared this with my air fryer friend – it’s for them as much as for you. It brought me cheer, and I hope it brings you the same. I hope you consider this worthy of testing out. Let me know how you got on.

Xoxo CC