raspberry apple oat dessert

Have some raspberries and apples to use up.  Saw this on Forks Over Knives, and I'm giving it a try with modifications.  I plan to freeze portions in jars to eat in the future with oats.

Apple-Raspberry Crisp 

Ingredients

• 8 medium sweet apples, such as Gala or Fuji, chopped (48 ounces)
• 1 pound frozen raspberries, thawed (4 cups)
• 2 cups oat flour (which can just be oats pulverized in a food processor; I used cassava flour)
• 2 cups rolled oats
• ½ cup pure maple syrup (I did use 1/4 cup maple syrup, and substituted 1/4 cup dried plum puree)
• ¼ cup almond butter (I used peanut butter) 
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 425°F.
• In a skillet over medium heat, cook chopped apples, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften, 5 to 7 minutes. Add a bit of water if needed to keep apples from sticking. Transfer apples to an 11-inch square or 13x9-inch rectangular baking dish; top with raspberries.  (NOTE: I'm skipping this step because my apples are a little soft already; I'm going to put them into the pan and bake for 10 minutes, then add raspberries for some more time, and then add the topping and bake as below)
• In a bowl, combine oat flour, rolled oats, maple syrup, almond butter, baking powder, and salt; rub in with fingertips until mixture comes together in small clumps. Spread the crumble over the fruit. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

 

zucchini apple salad

 OK, this is very good, exactly what I was hoping for to handle my October garden bounty.  Ideas from here, with some changes.  

Ingredients

• 1 pound zucchini, diced

• 3 medium apples, diced

• I omitted because I don't care for bell pepper though I would use a banana pepper or something else: ½ green bell pepper, diced

• ½ red onion, chopped or less - I used maybe 1/5 of yellow onion, chopped fine 

• 1/4 cup olive oil ⅓ cup vegetable oil

• 2 T apple cider vinegar  2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

• < 1/2 tsp sugar // 1 teaspoon white sugar

• 1 teaspoon dried basil

• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt

• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

  pepitas (these were a great addition, and sharp cheddar cheese would be, too) 

   

Directions  

 Combine zucchini, apples, bell pepper, and onion in a serving bowl.

Whisk together oil, vinegar, sugar, basil, salt, and black pepper in a small bowl until well combined; drizzle over zucchini-apple mixture. Toss to coat.

Even better the next day.   

applesauce for canning

 Here's how I make and can applesauce to use for baking throughout the year.  My apple tree is productive every other year, and I get a lot of windfall apples.  I pick up the apples every day and toss the really damaged ones and set aside the ones that seem ok.  I have a very serious problem with coddling moths, so almost every apple is wormy, which sucks BUT it's also not a big deal.  I just cut around the worm-affected parts, any bruises or blemishes, and there's still a lot of good apple left.  When I have a 5 gallon bucket imperfect apples, it makes about 5-6 jelly jars worth of applesauce.  I've made two batches this year, not sure if I'll make more.  It seems about time to pick the apples so I'll examine - the good ones can be put into storage, the blemished ones can be cut up and frozen to use throughout the year.  Though, I'm running short on freezer space so there may be more applesauce ahead this year. I do use a foodmill - I picked up a cheapo one on a good sale and it works fine.  It's not fast or anything but it gets there with enough cranking.  

Ingredients

• apples.  I have no idea what variety my tree is, and I also picked a bunch of apples from a person out the road who has no idea what variety hers are.  They're all good.
• water.
• nothing else.  I don't add any sweetener or spices because I usually use it for baking. It's also good for just eating from the jar and I could zhuzh it up later if I wanted to. 

Directions

•  wash apples (I have them in a 5 gallon bucket that I fill with lukewarm water and vinegar, and I rinse the apples and check for dirt, etc.)  I also don't let the apples set for long on the ground
• prepare apples.  Chop them up and remove any bad spots.  For me the cores are almost always bad because of the worms, and then any other spots.  Peeling is optional if using a food mill.  Put them in a pot.  
• Add a bit of water - the amount depends on juiciness of apples, how closely I'm tending to the pot, etc.  I probably put in anywhere from 1/2-1 1/2 cups.  
• Heat up the apples, stirring as necessary.  Let them cook down and fall apart.  This always happens faster than I expect, usually showing progress at about 15 minutes.  I let them cook a lot longer last time because there were some that weren't breaking down, and I used my potato masher.  Plus, I'd added too much water so that needed to cook down.
• when sufficiently cooked, let cool, and run through a food mill to remove peels, cores, etc.  
• Heat up the jars while that's happening. 
• Heat the applesauce back up to boiling - everything needs to be hot for canning.
• Put hot applesauce into hot jars and add lemon juice (note: I don't always remember to do this and I'm unsure it's really necessary; some websites say that it is, but I just checked the official canning websites and they don't require it; if using it, the recommendation is 1 T per quart, so scant tsp per jelly jar); leave 1/2" headspace
• Process 15 minutes in water bath (for pints or smaller).  

apple oat dessert

 apple-oat dessert

Just saw this on a video and I'm going to give it a try as a dessert with yogurt.  

• 50 g oats
• 150 g apple, chopped
• 150 g yogurt
• 2 medium eggs
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• (1 tsp brown sugar)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder

Mix together, bake for 25 minutes at 200C/ 400 F.

broccoli quinoa salad

 This is a quite tasty salad from the NYT found here. Broccoli was looking good at the farmers market so it came home and I had just read this recipe on-line, so now it's made.  It's good.  A little strange, and we'll see how it is in a few days because it makes a lot.  I'll probably stuff it in a pita for breakfast, as I'm liking my days better when they start with vegetables. 

Ingredients

Yield:4 to 6 servings 

• Kosher salt
• 1cup quinoa, rinsed
• 1lemon
• 3tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3tablespoons Dijon mustard (maybe start with 2 - it seemed a little mustard heavy)
• (recipe called for 2tablespoons honey but I deleted that and added some extra ACV)
• 2tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1large bunch broccoli (about 1½ pounds)
• 1medium tart and crisp apple
• 4ounces sharp Cheddar
• ¾cup toasted pecans, roughly chopped
• ½cup dried cranberries (I used dried cherries)

Preparation

1. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil on high and season aggressively with salt. Add the quinoa, then reduce the heat to maintain a simmer; cook until plump and tender, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a fine-mesh sieve; rinse with cool water and drain well.

2. While the quinoa cooks, finely grate the zest of the lemon into a large bowl then cut the lemon in half. Add the olive oil, mustard, honey and apple cider vinegar, plus the juice of ½ lemon; whisk together. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
   
3. Peel the stem of the broccoli and trim off the dry end. Finely chop the entire broccoli and add to the dressing. Core the apple then finely chop the apple and the cheese; add to the broccoli and toss to combine.

4. Add the cooked quinoa, nuts and cranberries and toss to combine. Taste and add more salt, pepper and lemon juice, as needed. Store, refrigerated, for up to 3 days.

canned apple crisp

Apple crisp made with canned apples, recipe from here.  I didn't want to use butter (it's expensive and I don't have a lot) but I wanted to use up some apples I'd canned a summer or two ago.  This hit the spot with some yogurt.

(Here's another one I'll try next time: https://texashomesteader.com/recipe-apple-crumble-dessert-from-home-canned-apples/) 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Empty 1 quart jar of apples into pan.  Drain partially.  (The recipe said not to drain, but that was too much liquid)

In a small bowl combine:

• 2 T lemon juice
• 2 T sour cream
• 1 T honey
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• pinch of salt, and then add
• 60 grams oats (2/3 cup-ish) 

 Spread oat mixture over the top of the apples.  Bake for 25 minutes covered, then remove foil and bake another 10 minutes.

carrot and apple muffins

 These carrot and apple muffins would probably also be great with zucchini or other vegetables/fruits.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup nuts or dried fruit
• 1/4 cup (coconut) oil
• 1 1/4 cups (white) whole wheat flour
• 1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon  ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3/4 cup grated carrot (about 1 large carrot)
• 3/4 cup grated apple (1 small apple will be more than enough; no need to peel it)
• 2 large eggs at room temperature
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt at room temperature
• 1/3 cup honey or maple syrup
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

 

Instructions

- Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 12 baking cups with paper liners or lightly coat with nonstick spray. Set aside. If using nuts for the mix-ins, toast them in the oven now: Spread the nuts into an even layer on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees F for 8 to 12 minutes (for pecan or walnut halves), until they are lightly browned and fragrant. Transfer the nuts immediately to a cutting board; roughly chop and set aside. 

- If using coconut oil: Place the coconut oil in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Heat in the microwave just until melted (about 30 seconds on high). Set aside to cool to room temperature.

- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and salt. Add the grated carrot and apple and fold to combine.

- To the bowl with the oil, add the eggs, Greek yogurt, honey, and vanilla. Whisk until smooth. If the coconut oil resolidifies, warm it in the microwave in 15-second bursts, and stop as soon as you can stir the mixture back together. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and stir gently until just combined. Do not overmix. Fold in the nuts or any other mix-ins.

- Divide the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.  Place the pan on a wire rack and let the muffins cool in the pan for 4 minutes. Gently transfer the muffins to the rack to finish cooling completely.

apple crisp

 Yesterday I canned apples from my backyard tree and some jars didn't seal so I made this crisp to use them - and uncanned apples - up.  It's ok. The canned apples were mush-with-peels and the topping not crisp and the flour made it kind of pasty.  I cut the sugar by about 2/3 and could cut even more.  I'll give it away and make more to keep refining it.  PLenty of apples still on the tree, if the damn squirrels don't eat them all.  

Ingredients

For the topping:

• ¾ cup (95 grams) all-purpose flour
• 1 cup (99 grams) old-fashioned rolled oats
•  1/4 cup (100 grams) light brown sugar
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup (113 grams) cold unsalted butter, cubed
• 1/2 cup pecans  

For the filling:

• 7 to 8 fresh apples, such as Golden Delicious or Honeycrisp - I filled a 9x13 pan halfway up with a mix of drained canned apples and chopped/sliced fresh 
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from about 1 medium lemon)
• ¼ cup (32 grams) all-purpose flour
•  1/4 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• spices which can include cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, nutmeg
• 1/2 c pecans 

Directions

Make the topping:

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a 9x13-inch metal or glass pan with cooking spray or butter and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, rolled oats, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt. Whisk together until combined. With a pastry cutter or a fork, cut in the butter until the mixture resembles pea-sized crumbs. Stir in pecans. Place in the refrigerator while you prepare the apple filling.

Make the filling:

1. Core, peel, and slice the apples into ¼ -inch to ½ -inch slices until you reach 6 cups of sliced apples, weighing 650 grams. Place in a medium-sized bowl and immediately drizzle with the lemon juice, tossing until evenly coated.
2. In a separate small bowl, mix together the flour, sugars, salt and spices and nuts (adjust to your preference). Pour dry mixture over the apples and toss to coat, mixing until evenly distributed amongst the apples.
3. Pour the apple mixture directly into the greased pan. Sprinkle the streusel evenly over the apples.
4. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the apples feel tender when pierced with a fork, and the topping is golden brown. Let the apple crisp cool for 20 minutes before serving. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream on top.

 

 

 

farmers market breakfast bread

This is pretty tasty!

Farmers Market Breakfast Bread

Makes 1 (9-inch) loaf

Prep time 15 minutes

Cook time 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour (120 grams)
  
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• spices (cinnamon, cardamom, etc.
• 1/2 cup sugar (or less)
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons oil (plus for pan)
• 1/2 cup whole-milk plain yogurt
• 2 cups shredded vegetables (one or combo - beets, carrots, summer squash)  - I made it with an apple and a couple of carrots; may try some sauerkraut next time.
  

Instructions

1. Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F. Generously coat a 9x5-inch loaf pan with vegetable oil; set aside.

2. Whisk the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl.

3. Whisk the sugar and eggs together in a large bowl until pale and shiny, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the oil and yogurt. Pour in the flour mixture and fold with a rubber spatula until just combined. Fold in the vegetables, stirring just enough to distribute vegetables evenly throughout.

4. Scrape the batter into the loaf pan. Pick up the pan and gently tap it on the counter three times to dislodge any bubbles. Bake until the top is golden-brown, the bread is pulling away from the sides, and a tester inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs attached, 60 to 70 minutes.

5. Let the bread cool in the pan 20 minutes. Flip the bread out onto a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.

apple goat cheese crisp

There is a bakery in New Orleans that makes apple-goat cheese king cake, which I love.  I was speaking of this and a coworker brought me an apple-goat cheese croissant, which was such a lovely gesture.  And then Braeburns were on sale for a good price and I grabbed a backpack full (only slight exaggeration), and I have Costco goat cheese as I wanted it for a recipe and now I have approximately 26 pounds left.

And so I contemplated how I wanted to eat this apple-goat cheese dish, and I read approximately 8,000 recipes.  Nothing clicked.  Truth is, I don't much care for flaky doughs, so filo isn't really for me.  What I really wanted was a kuchen, but I needed something strong to make sure the goat cheese wasn't too overwhelming.  I looked up and thought of a lot of doughs, but nothing was really striking me.  The kuchen problem is that I lived in Germany for a couple of years and ate SUCH great desserts that inspire me but I remember them through 30 years of distortion. 

And then yesterday I went to a talk and the artist served a kuchen with rhubarb and gooseberries, and that sort of satisfied the kuchen, so I realized I wanted something else strong ... like pecans. 

So I came to this recipe, and it's very nice.  The only bummer is that I wish I'd had maple syrup (how do I not?!) and used less sugar (I already cut it, but I think it should be cut more).  Because it is between the apples and the pecan-oat layer, the goat cheese works really well. 

Ingredients

TOPPING

• 3/4 cup old fashioned oats
• 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar (recipe calls for 1/2 c)
• 3/4+ cup coarsely chopped pecans (recipe calls for 1/2 c)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter melted

FILLING

• 5 baking apples such as Granny Smith or Braeburns; I chopped into chunks
• 1/4 or less cup packed light brown sugar (recipe calls for 1/3 c)
• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup (or some honey)
• 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 4 ounces goat cheese cut into small pieces
• 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter cut into 6-8 slices

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Position a rack in the middle of the oven.

TOPPING

• In a small bowl, stir together the oats, brown sugar, pecans, cinnamon, and salt until completely combined.
• Drizzle the melted butter over the mixture and stir until butter is evenly dispersed and all of the oats are moist. Set aside.

FILLING

• In a large bowl, combine the apples, brown sugar, maple syrup, cornstarch, lemon juice, vanilla extract, and salt. Stir together until everything is evenly dispersed. There will be a lot of liquid at the bottom-- this is ok. Set aside.
• Heat a 9" cast iron dutch oven over medium-high heat. When skillet is adequately heated, pour apple mixture evenly into it. When apples begin to steam, begin stirring to evenly distribute the brown sugar sauce. It will start to thicken. Cook while stirring until sauce is thick and evenly coats all of the apples, approximately 5 minutes. Turn off the heat, but leave the skillet on the burner.
• Place the butter and goat cheese pieces over the top of the cooked apples, trying your best to evenly distribute them. Top everything with the oat topping
• Cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and bake until crisp and brown on top, an additional 20-25 minutes. After that time, turn off the oven and allow crisp to sit in the oven with the door cracked until the sugar stops bubbling and you can safely handle it.

apple phyllo pastry

My fennel-kale phyllo pastries are wonderful, but the phyllo was larger than the space I planned for it to sit so it got pretty beat up and I want to use it up.

So, what to do with phyllo? Well, I do have apples and dried cranberries I've been wanting to use up ...

****

• apples, chopped (2 large ones was all I had but more would be good)
• dried cranberries, soaked in rum or bourbon for a couple of hours or overnight (1/4 c)
  
• pecans or almonds, chopped or sliced (1/2 c)
  
• sugar (to taste - I used 2 T brown sugar)
  
• cinnamon (I like a LOT of cinnamon, so about 1-2 T; nutmeg is also good but I'm not a real fan)
  
• lemon juice (Meyer's lemon juice, about 1 T)
• dash salt
  

Mix together and simmer on the stovetop until apples soften a bit - about 10-15 minutes. (Adding cornstarch w/water to thicken it would be a good step but I just was so not in the mood for Argo.)

Melt 2-3 T butter w/2 T honey. Lay out a sheet of phyllo and lightly brush it with butter/honey; add another sheet and repeat. I had 10 sheets of phyllo to use up, but about 5 would be good or anything in between.

Put filling on phyllo and roll up like a jelly roll - or put on parchment and tuck up (like picture above) and bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes, until phyllo is browned.

***
The melted butter makes it not really low fat, but it's so much better than a pie crust. This would be great with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream!