Martha Stewart Allegedly Whipped Up This Dessert In A Prison Microwave

When Martha Stewart spent five months in prison in 2004, it was unclear what would happen to the media empire she had spent more than 20 years building. The world quickly learned, though, that Stewart's penchant for ingenuity and creative problem-solving didn't only apply to coming up with better ways to eat soufflé. While she would eventually return to form with a brand that was stronger than ever, her stint in prison did provide us with one of the most Martha Stewart-iest anecdotes possible: the time she made a baked apple in the microwave for a fellow inmate.

The story goes that a woman incarcerated with Stewart at the time, by the name of Meg Phipps, received an invitation to meet — along with a baked apple topped with caramel and possibly cinnamon — which Stewart had cooked in a microwave in her cell. Phipps suspected there may have been some illicit use of cafeteria ingredients to make this little treat, but hey, we're not here to judge (especially since she was hardly the only one nicking some kipper from the cafeteria). Perhaps even more impressively, at the potluck held to celebrate Stewart's release, she somehow showed up with a caramel flan.

This story, which comes from the CNN docuseries "The Many Lives of Martha Stewart," contains all the familiar hallmarks that fans of the Stewart brand have come to expect over the years: generosity, resourcefulness, and, of course, culinary excellence. The woman who refuses to bring a grocery store dessert to a dinner party stayed on brand, even in the toughest of circumstances.

If you're wondering, "How in the heck do you bake apples in a prison microwave?" it's a fair question. While sweet, spiced baked apples are typically cooked in an oven for 30 minutes with some water at the bottom to keep them moist, the microwave is actually a perfect vehicle for whipping up a fast, delicious dessert. Best of all, it doesn't heat your house up in case you're cooking on a hot summer day.

All a baked apple requires, once it has been cored in a manner that leaves the bottom untouched, is butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon — though a pinch of nutmeg never hurt anyone. Simply load up the hole of the apple with the fillings and microwave for three to four minutes. If you want to take a page from Martha Stewart's playbook, topping it with a caramel drizzle makes for a beautiful pièce de résistance, as do raisins, walnuts, cinnamon streusel, or vanilla ice cream.

Emulating Stewart's potluck contributions might take a bit more forward planning, but not much more in terms of ingredients. All you need to make a microwave flan is sugar, water, milk, vanilla extract, and an egg. After caramelizing sugar in the microwave, simply heat the remaining ingredients for a minute, then chill for four hours before serving.