Apple compote

My parents grow their own apples. Occasionally we had many hundred pounds of produce from their trees. Storing the fruit is challenging without a room with appropriate climate. Consequently we usually sold most of the apples while fresh, and stored only a small portion through winter. The apples were examined one-by-one before being stored in wooden crates in the cellar. They maintained their freshness surprisingly well, but toward the middle of winter they inevitably became wrinkled and slightly dried out. The below recipe was a fantastic way to prepare the old apples for a cold winter's evening snack.

Ingredients
2 pound apples
2 sticks of cinnamon
4-5 pieces of cloves
sugar
lemon juice
water

Preparation
Peel and core the apples, then cut them into quarters. Cover them with water, flavor the liquid with the spices and sugar and lemon juice to taste. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 1 minute. Taste the liquid again, and adjust the flavor.

Allow to cool and set aside during the day. Serve it cold, or -as I prefer it- warmed up.