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 for 5 seconds, healing up to health total. Unlike other food items, Golden Apples can be eaten even when the player is full, which will still activate the regeneration effect.

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, which will cure them after a roughly 3-minute delay. They will then revert back to being ordinary Villagers.

Enchanted Golden Apples are similar to the original, but are much more powerful, much more expensive, and do not occur naturally. They grant Regeneration IV (much faster healing) for 30 seconds, and both Resistance and Fire Resistance for 5 minutes (see status effects). Enchanted Golden Apples shine purple, much like other enchanted items. They cannot be used to cure Zombie Villagers.

Crafting
Normal Golden Apple (pre-13w23a):

Normal Golden Apple (13w23a and later):

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 red 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 them in quantity.
 * Golden apples are renewable due to the fact that Gold Nuggets 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 4 HP. 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 12 (6 shanks), then a Golden Carrot will bring you up to the normal healing level, rendering the 4 HP of regeneration unnecessary.

Trivia

 * An enchanted golden apple requires 72 golden ingots to craft; a normal golden apple requires 8 golden nuggets to craft.
 * However, after 13w23a, normal golden apples require eight golden ingots to craft. This is 9 times as much as the previous recipe (though still much cheaper than the enchanted recipe). However, they also gain a much more powerful effect.
 * 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 the Maximum health boost it gives eating a normal golden apple while at full health will allow an unarmoured player to survive a fully charged shot from a bow enchanted with level V power though this tactic is risky as it leaves the player with just half a heart.