Instructions

1. Remove the stem from your apple and hold the apple firmly on a cutting board. Cut one side from the fruit, taking away 1/4 to 1/3 of its total size. This creates a flat surface for the apple to rest on as you work, and the cut-off slice furnishes the raw material for your neck and head.

2. Swivel the apple so its flat side is down and the stem end -- the front of your bird -- is pointed toward you. Make two vertical cuts, approximately 1/4 inch apart, on either side of the apple's centerline. Stop roughly 1/4 inch from the cutting board. Make a second, horizontal cut on either side at about 1/4 inch from the cutting board, removing a broad wedge of apple. These will form your wings.

3. Place each wing on your cutting board. Working carefully, cut a small and medium-sized wedge from each, keeping the spacing as even as you can manage. Gently push the smallest wedge backward with your thumb, so it slides out about 1/4 inch to 3/8 inch. Repeat with the medium-sized wedge. If they stick, reach in delicately with your knife blade and finish the cuts where necessary.

4. Place each wing back on the bird's body, offsetting it from the "shoulders," so all of the segments have the same spacing. Turn the apple so the stem end is facing you, and use the tip of your knife to cut a small, rectangular channel for the neck.

5. Lay the cut-off side of the apple on your cutting board, and examine its natural curves at each end. Select the most attractive end as your head. Make two parallel cuts, freeing a narrow, flat strip of apple. Trim the slice with the tip of your knife as needed, to give it the elegant arc of a swan's neck. Press an apple seed or whole clove into either side, for eyes.

6. Position the swan's neck in the small channel you'd cut at the front of its body, between the wings. Pin it in place with a wooden toothpick, to complete your swan.