Ok, so caramel-, chocolate- and nut butter-dipping put a dent in that bottomless bag of apples you schlepped home from the orchard a few weekends ago, but you’ve still got Fujis coming out your ears. What’s a waste-not, kitchen-savvy, seasonal locavore to do? Grab a peeler, a knife, a few indie-ssentials and get cooking.
Bottomless bushel or not, these a-peeling dishes will keep you apple-y and healthfully humming along all day, satisfying you to the core. #punny
Breakfast
Mother knows best, so don’t skimp on this oh-so-important meal of the day. Make an apple compote – it comes together quickly and can be eaten over plain yogurt and sprinkled with Ginger-Cashew Granola, spooned onto whole grain pancakes or stirred into oatmeal. Leftovers keep in the fridge for five days!
Apple Compote Recipe
2 pounds apples (peeled, cored, chunked)
2 tablespoons Apple Cider Syrup
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Pinch of cinnamon
Pinch of ginger
DIRECTIONS
- Combine 2 pounds of apples (peeled, cored and cut into chunks) with 2 tablespoons of water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan set over medium-high heat. Bring to a bubble and then reduce the heat to low and cover.
- Cook, stirring often, 15-20 minutes, then add 2 tablespoons Apple Cider Syrup, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and a few shakes of whatever baking spices you fancy (we fancy cinnamon and ground ginger).
- Cook 3-5 more minutes to marry flavors. Here comes the compote, all dressed in cinnamon…
Lunch
The lunchtime salad is one of the best ways to meet your daily leafy greens (and apple!) quotient. And, having it already made in a jar that’s easy to take to work will keep you from caving and spending another $20 on a sushi burrito and matcha latte.
Quinoa Harvest Salad with Maple-Tahini Dressing Recipe
½ cup cooked quinoa
⅓ cup tahini
1½ tablespoons Maple Syrup
Juice, 1 lemon
Splash Apple Cider Vinegar
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
1 celery stalk, diced
1 carrot, shredded
1 radish, sliced thin
1 apple, chopped
1/8 cup Dried Cranberries & Blueberries
¼ cup Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
1 cup salad greens
DIRECTIONS
- Cook the quinoa according to the directions on your favorite brand’s box.
- To make the dressing, combine ⅓ cup tahini, 1½ tablespoons maple syrup, juice of 1 lemon, splash Apple Cider Vinegar, pinch salt, freshly ground pepper and enough water to make pourable.
- Pour some dressing into bottom of a mason jar and add layers of diced celery, shredded carrot, slivered radishes, chopped apples, dried berries and cooked quinoa.
- Top with Roasted Pumpkin Seeds and your favorite salad greens. Put a lid on it and when you are ready to eat, upend into a bowl or just shake and eat. Your coworkers will be green with envy.
Dinner
Pork with apples and onions is an under 30-minute meal perfect for…tonight. And because you’ll need something to deglaze the pan with, you get to open a bottle of Serious Cider before you sit down to eat. To the cook!
Skillet Pork Chops with Apples and Onions Recipe
2 6-8 ounce pork chops
Finishing Flake Sea Salt
Bourbon Smoked Black Pepper
1/3 stick butter
2 small apples, cut into ½-inch wedges
1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
¼ cup Descendant Pom Pomme Cider
1 teaspoon Whole Grain Mustard
¼ cup heavy cream (optional)
1 sprig thyme or rosemary
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 450°.
- Sprinkle pork chops with salt and pepper and cook in a generous amount of bubbling butter in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat 5-6 minutes each side.
- Remove chops from skillet and add 2 small apples cut into ½-inch thick wedges and one small yellow onion, thinly sliced, root intact. Cook until browned. Remove apples and onions from skillet.
- Add a good glug of cider, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Whisk in a heaping spoonful of Whole Grain Mustard (maybe even some heavy cream!) and cook for a few minutes.
- Nestle chops, apples, onions and thyme or rosemary sprigs back into the skillet and cook in the oven for 5-10 minutes, or until liquid is just beginning to bubble. Isn’t cooking fun?
Dessert
Breakfast’s aforementioned compote heated-up and served over ice cream drizzled with Vegan Caramel Sauce and sprinkled with Spiced Pecans would be a perfectly delicious ending to this apple-licious day. But we need to empty our bag once and for all. Julie’s Original Gluten-Free White Cake Mix is a tasty workhorse that can be endlessly gussied. An apple almond cake that requires no sifting? Oven’s on!
Apple Almond Cake Recipe
1/8 stick butter
1 box Julie’s Original Cake Mix
1½ cups of almond milk
⅓ cup coconut oil
1½ teaspoons pure almond extract
3-4 small apples, halved then sliced
Pinch of Bourbon Sugar
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 350° and grease an 11 x 7-inch glass baking dish.
- In a large bowl, combine cake mix, 1½ cups of almond milk, ⅓ cup coconut oil and 1 ½ teaspoons pure almond extract.
- Spread batter into prepared baking dish and top with several small apple halves cut into slices and fanned out slightly. This is your cake, so make it pretty.
4. Sprinkle some bourbon sugar over the top and bake 1 hour or until an inserted cake tester comes out clean. Now, let’s revisit that ice cream and caramel sauce...
This many apples a day is bound to keep a lot more than the doctor away.