Apple Brown Betty with Sorghum Zabaglione

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly butter an 8 by 8-inch baking dish.

In a large bowl, toss the apples with the granulated sugar, cinnamon, ginger, lemon juice, and the vanilla pod and seeds. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 30 minutes.

Tear the bread up and pulse in a food processor.

Spread out the bread crumbs on a rimmed baking sheet and toast in the oven for 5 to 8 minutes, until golden. Set aside.

While the bread crumbs are toasting, place 4 tablespoons of the butter into a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook until the milk solids separate from the fat and the butter begins to brown.

In a medium bowl, mix the bread crumbs, brown sugar, and warm brown butter together.

Add about one-quarter of the bread-crumb mixture to the apples. Toss to combine.

Fill the prepared baking dish with the apple mixture. Dot with the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter.

Cover the top with the remaining bread-crumb mixture. Press down firmly all over the top so that the mixture is tightly packed in the dish.

Bake on the middle rack of the oven until the apples are soft and the juices start to bubble, 25 to 35 minutes.

Serve warm and with a 1/2-cup scoop of sorghum zabaglione on top of each portion.

Reprinted with permission from A New Turn in the South by Hugh Acheson, © 2011 Clarkson PotterHUGH ACHESON is the chef/partner of the Athens, Georgia, restaurants Five and Ten (named best Atlanta restaurant by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution) and The National; the shop Gosford Wine; and his Atlanta restaurant, Empire State South. He is a five-time James Beard nominee for "Best Chef Southeast" and was named "Best New Chef" by Food & Wine. He lives in Athens with his wife and their two daughters.