Golden Apple

Golden Apples are a food item. They are moderately difficult to obtain, but are one of the most beneficial food items, along with Golden Carrots. They can be crafted, and are very rarely (about 0.66% chance) found in dungeon and stronghold chests.

Eating a Golden Apple not only restores, but grants Regeneration II for 5 seconds and Absorption for 2 minutes. Unlike other food items, Golden Apples can be eaten even when the player is full, which will still activate the effects.

Golden Apples are required in order to cure Zombie Villagers: While under the effects of a Potion of Weakness, Zombie Villagers can be fed a Golden Apple. After roughly 3 minutes they will revert to ordinary Villagers.

Like Golden Carrots, Golden Apples can be used in the taming and breeding of Horses. However, using Golden Apples is much less efficient than using Golden Carrots since they require 9 times more gold, using 8 Gold Ingots to craft instead of 8 Gold Nuggets.

Enchanted Golden Apples are similar to the original, but are much more powerful, much more expensive, and do not occur naturally. They grant Regeneration V for 30 seconds, and both Resistance and Fire Resistance for 5 minutes. Like the regular golden apple they also give Absorption for 2 minutes. Enchanted Golden Apples shine purple, much like other enchanted items. They can be used for taming and breeding Horses but cannot be used to cure Zombie Villagers.

Crafting
Normal Golden Apple:

Enchanted Golden Apple:

Advantages

 * They are the only food items that cause temporary constant health regeneration that is not dependent on the player's hunger. This is indicated by the line of hearts bobbing up and down in a wave pattern, with each full wave restoring half a heart.
 * Compared with potions of regeneration, golden apples are available for fighting monsters before the player is able to brew or even go to the Nether in single player mode. (Brewing requires Blaze Rods and Nether Wart, both found only in the Nether.)  In particular, the enchanted version provides Fire Resistance, which is handy for collecting one's first few Blaze Rods.
 * Golden apples also are stackable up to 64 (like other food), whereas potions take up an inventory space for each potion.
 * Although standard apples have a low chance of dropping from oak leaves (0.5% per leaf block), tree farming can produce a good supply of them. Trading with villagers can get also them in quantity.
 * Golden apples are renewable due to the fact that Gold Ingots can be crafted from Gold Nuggets, which are obtainable through Zombie Pigmen.
 * Golden apples can be used to create a village by curing zombie villagers. If Generated Structures are turned off, this is the only way to have villagers and trade with them.

Disadvantages

 * It takes time to eat, and the basic golden apple then takes 5 seconds to heal health points.  Splash potions are a good alternative, if you have brewing capability.
 * Compared to a Golden Carrot, the basic Golden Apple restores less food and less saturation. If time is not a factor, and your food level is at least, then a Golden Carrot will bring you up to the normal healing level, rendering the health points of regeneration unnecessary.
 * Although they are in a sense renewable, they are still extremely expensive to craft. A single Enchanted Golden Apple requires exactly 72 Gold Ingots (a staggering 648 Gold Nuggets) along with an Apple which are not altogether common.

Trivia

 * An enchanted golden apple requires 72 golden ingots to craft; a normal golden apple requires 8 golden ingots to craft.
 * Due to this item being able to heal the player a large amount, they are commonly found as rewards in custom adventure maps.
 * Enchanted Golden Apples provide the highest level potion effect thus far: Regeneration V. The healing speed is enough to outrace nearly any source of damage short of explosions and falling into the Void.
 * Golden apples are the only foods that can still be eaten when the player's hunger bar is full.
 * Due to the Absorption effect it gives, eating a standard golden apple while at full health will allow an unarmored player to survive a fully charged shot from a bow enchanted with Power V, although this tactic is risky as it leaves the player with just half a heart.
 * In the popular Ultra Hardcore minigame, where natural health regeneration is turned off, the Golden Apple has a critical role as a healing mechanism, as it is the only non-potion item that directly heals the player.
 * Because of the very quick regeneration from the Enchanted Golden Apple, a player can get health points worth of health from the 30 seconds of Regeneration V.