Monthly Archives: October 2011

Apples for Dinner

Posted on by
Reply

As I have mentioned in my past posts we have had boxes and boxes of apples to use this fall.  I love fresh apples, there are so many good recipes that we love to use.  Most of these recipes are for sweet treats.  Most people do not think of apples as being a  savory recipe ingredient.  We have made applesauce, apple leather, apple pies, and apple crisps.  But we still have some apples left and I decided to make one of my FAVORITE fall recipes, chicken apple chili.  A friend and I made this last year and I have since made some adjustments and variations to make this dish easy and delicious.   It does not require many ingredients and can be put in the slow cooker on a chilly fall day.

Chicken Apple Chili:

Ingredients:

One Can Black Beans

One Can Chili Beans

One Can White Beans

1/2 Cup Sour Cream

1 Tsp Cumin(more or less to suit your taste)

2 Tbs Olive Oil

1/4 cup Sweet Onion-Diced

4 Medium Sized Apples-Cored and Diced(I leave the peel on)

3 Chicken Breasts Cut into 1/2 inch cubes

First, in a medium saute pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat and add the apples and onion.  Saute the apples and onion together until the onions become tender (your apples may not be fully cooked yet, but that is okay).

 

After your have cooked these you can put them in your slow cooker on warm.

Take your chicken breasts and cook them in the same pan you used for the apples and onions(this will allow the chicken to absorb the apple and onion flavor).  Cook the chicken over medium heat until browned on both sides.

While the chicken is cooking, add the remaining ingredients to the slow cooker and stir until well mixed.  Turn slow cooker low setting.

After the chicken is browned, add to the slow cooker and stir.

Let this cook for 2-3 hours on low heat(makes 4-6 servings)

At our house we use this recipe often and we use shredded cheese and a spoonful sour cream as toppings along with a handful of crackers or Fritos.  The apples add just the right amount of sweetness to a savory dish. Enjoy!

Twitt

More Apples, More Ideas

Posted on by
1
Assorted Red and Green Apples 2120px

After using so many of our apples to make applesauce, I started to think we had more applesauce than we could ever use. That being said, we still had boxes and more boxes of apples to use and I really didn’t like the idea of seeing any of them go to waste.  The first idea I came up with was another use for all the extra applesauce we made.

When I was a kid, my mom used to make “fruit leather”, kind of a homemade fruit roll-up.  She would cook the apples, mash them, add different flavors, and put the mixture in the food dehydrator for 10-12 hours.  Once it had cooked she would use kitchen shears and cut the leather into strips that my sisters and I could eat it as snacks.  In our house we do not have a food dehydrator, so I decided to make my own fruit leather in the oven. This is an easy recipe, but it does take some time to cook.  For me, this is a weekend recipe that I get a start on first thing in the morning because I know it takes some time to cook.

Fruit Leather:

What you will need:

6 cups of Easy Applesauce

Parchment Paper

Cookie Sheet

Optional Ingredients for Different Flavors:

Kool-Aid packet(any flavor) Mixed with Your Homemade Applesauce

Other Berries Cooked Down and Blended with Your Applesauce

First, preheat your oven to 175-200 degrees.

Then line your cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Spread the applesauce on the parchment paper to 1/4 inch thickness.

You’ll need to cook it in the oven for 8-10 hours(you will know the fruit leather is done when it is shiny on top).

I like to double this and put two cookie sheets in at a time. I check my fruit leather every couple of hours and I turn the cookie sheet around once or twice during the cooking time.  After it is done I slice it into 1.5 x 5 ” strips and put it in a storage container and my kids can enjoy it one strip at a time.

I usually let my kids decide on what flavors we will use.  They each pick out their favorite Kool-Aid package or another fruit and they each get to make their own flavor(the Kool-Aid is also neat because it turns the fruit leather interesting colors).

Twitt

Apples Apples Everywhere

Posted on by
Reply
McIntosh am Baum

I love to cook  and I often cook with whatever we have in the kitchen pantry.  On occasion, I luck out and someone brings me some fresh fruits or vegetables from their own garden to use for myself.  Last week we were fortunate enough to get a few boxes of apples from our friend in town who’s apple tree was LOADED with apples this year. She invited the kids over to pick apples and we came home with more apples than we know what to do with! We have lots of fall recipes that we use apples for in our house but one of my kids’ favorites is a simple recipe for applesauce.  I love it because this recipe is so easy and my kids love the taste of some fresh warm applesauce.  We make large quantities at once, but it is really easy to freeze the leftovers and save for another fall day.

Easy Applesauce:

Ingredients:

5-10lbs of cored and sliced apples(I like to simplify things as much as possible for myself when I am cooking.  So I minimize the work load in this recipe by leaving the peels on)

1 cups of granulated sugar

1 cup of dark brown sugar

2 tsp of cinnamon

2 tsp of lemon or lime juice

2 cups water

First wash your apples, then core and slice them.  Then place them in a large stock pot with the water, cinnamon, lemon juice, and the sugar(you can make this applesauce as sweet as you like, add more or less sugar to suit your taste)  Cook your apples over medium heat for approx 25 minutes.

After the apples are cooked remove from heat and cool for about 20 minutes.  Next, you can put the cooked apples in a blender(you will probably only be able to fit a portion of them into the blender at a time, so it is a good idea to have a separate container ready to pour your blended applesauce into) Cover your blender tightly and blend for 5 to 10 seconds(depending on how smooth you want it).  This will turn the apples, peels included, into delicious applesauce.

I love this recipe because it is so easy and I can include the kids when I am making it. My son, who is six, gets to wash all the apples for me.  My daughter, who is 8, gets to add all the sliced apples to the stock pot.  Of course they both get to be taste testers when we ar finished making the applesauce.  I usually store the leftovers in the freezer by simply pouring it in freezer bags and tossing it in the freezer until we are ready for it. I hope you enjoy!

Twitt