It's Fall - and Apple Season!

Apple Season!

So many wonderful memories revolve around fall, its cooler weather, and wonderful homemade foods. A fall staple in many houses are apples!

This is the first of a two-week series on everything apples! Truthfully, we could do a month or more just on apples!

This week, we look at more savory meal dishes, and next week we will dive into desserts.

We are fortunate to have many orchards in our area, take some time to enjoy the many activities and of course the apples!

Healthy Breakfast Apple Crumble

Prep Time: 10 min.

Cook Time: 30 min.

Total Time: 40 min.

Apples:

6 sweet apples

1 T. cinnamon

pinch of salt

2 tsp. coconut oil

Crumble

2/3 C. oats

2/3 C. pecans

1 T. coconut oil

2 tsp. honey

Chop the apples and sauté them in a pan with the rest of the ingredients at medium-high. Cover the pan for about 2-3 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 350°F.

Put all the crumble ingredients into your food processor, add a splash of water (about 1 T.), and process until you get a crumbly mixture that sticks together.

Use a small baking pan, oil the surface or add parchment paper and spread the apples. Then squeeze the crumble mixture to form bigger pieces of crumble and spread these over the apples.

Bake for 15-20 min. or until the crumble is golden brown.

Let cool off a little bit and enjoy with some milk/yogurt for breakfast or ice cream for dessert.

Apple Tuna Salad Recipe

Prep Time: 15 min.

 Total Time: 52 min.

  Servings:  4

1 can (5 oz.) tuna, drained

1 C. diced Granny Smith apples

1/2 C. finely chopped celery

1/2 C. Greek yogurt

1 T. Dijon mustard

1 T. lemon juice

Salt and pepper to taste

Gather all ingredients and drain the canned tuna using a colander.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the drained tuna, diced apples, and chopped celery.

In a separate bowl, whisk together Greek yogurt, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, salt, and pepper until smooth.

Pour the dressing over the tuna mixture and gently fold until evenly coated.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 min.before serving.

Serve chilled on plates or in lettuce cups.

Savory Apple and Cheddar Grilled Cheese

Total Time: 20 min.

Servings: 1

2 slices sourdough bread

2 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, sliced

1 med. Granny Smith apple, thinly sliced

1 T. unsalted butter

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon (optional)

Prepare your ingredients by slicing the apple and cheese.

Butter one side of each slice of bread. On the unbuttered side, layer cheddar cheese and apple slices. Sprinkle cinnamon if desired.

Heat a skillet over medium heat and grill the sandwich buttered side down until golden brown (3-4 minutes).

Flip carefully and cook until both sides are crispy and cheese has melted (another 3-4 minutes).

Slice diagonally and serve warm with tomato soup or enjoy solo.

Blackstone Chicken Sweet Potatoes & Apples

Prep Time: 10 min.

Cook Time: 18 min.

Servings: 4

cooking oil of choice

1 lg. sweet potato diced, skin on

kosher salt, pepper

1-1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs diced

1 lg. Honeycrisp apple diced, skin on

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. paprika

1 bunch kale chopped

1/4 C. Dijon mustard

2 T. honey (or hot honey)

2 oz. crumbled goat cheese

Preheat griddle to medium. Add cooking oil, sweet potatoes, kosher salt, pepper, and squirt some water over top. Cover with melting dome for 7 to 8 min. Remove dome a few times to mix with spatulas and add more water before covering again.

Set melting dome aside. Add more oil to an empty space on the griddle along with the chicken, apples, kosher salt, and pepper. Cook and mix a few times, keeping the sweet potatoes, chicken, and apples separate for 3 minutes, then mix them all together with spatulas and cook another 3 to 4 min.

Add ground cumin, paprika, kale, and a little more kosher salt and pepper. Mix with spatulas 3 more min. Add Dijon mustard and honey, mix for 1 more minute. Serve with goat cheese crumbles over top.

Apple Cider Braised Pork Shoulder

Prep Time: 20 min.

Cook Time: 3 hrs. 45 min.

Total Time: 4 hrs. 5 min.

Servings: 6-8

4-5 lb. pork shoulder roast 

2 T. neutral oil

2 C. fresh apple cider (not apple cider vinegar)

2 C. chicken stock or broth

2 T. Dijon mustard

1 T. dehydrated minced onion

1 head of garlic, top sliced off opposite of the root end

3 rosemary sprigs

4 thyme sprigs

1 red onion, cut into thick slices

2 firm and slightly tart apples, peeled and cut into wedges

kosher salt

freshly cracked black pepper

Preheat an oven to 325° F.

Start by trimming the pork of excess fat, if there are large fat caps. Cut the pork into 4 large pieces, or leave it whole if it’s bone-in.

Pat the pork pieces dry with a paper towel and season liberally all over with kosher salt and pepper.

Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, arrange the pork in a single layer. Sear for 4-5 min. per side until the pork is deeply browned. Repeat on all sides. Depending on the size of your Dutch oven, you may need to do this in batches.

While the pork is searing, whisk together the cider, stock or broth, Dijon, and dehydrated minced onion together and set aside. Use kitchen twine to tie the rosemary and thyme together in a small bundle.

Once the pork is browned all over, pour in the braising liquid. Arrange the herbs and garlic head in the pot with the pork, cover and place in the oven.

Braise for 3 hrs. or so (start checking at 2 and a half hours for boneless), flipping the pork halfway through. Once the pork is just shy of fork tender, remove the pork from the oven and arrange the onions and apples around the pork. Cover and return to the oven for another 30-45 min. The pork should be very tender at this point.

Remove the pork from the oven and let it rest in the braising liquid for 30 min.before serving. Squeeze the garlic cloves out of the husk into the broth or onto the pork. Season braising liquid to taste with salt and pepper. Serve the juices spooned over the pork, apples, and onions.

Apple Butter BBQ Ribs Recipe

Prep Time: 30 min.

Cook Time: 3 hrs.

Total Time: 3 hrs. 30 min. 

Servings: 5

2 racks of baby back ribs about 4-5 lbs. total

1 C. apple butter

1/2 C. BBQ sauce

1/4 C. apple cider vinegar

2 T. Worcestershire sauce

1 T. smoked paprika

1 T. garlic powder

1 T. onion powder

1 tsp. cayenne pepper adjust to taste

Salt and black pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 275°F.

Remove the membrane from the back of the ribs. This tough layer can prevent flavors from penetrating and make the ribs chewy.

In a small bowl, mix together the smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, salt, and black pepper to create your dry rub.

Generously apply the dry rub to both sides of the ribs, massaging it into the meat.

Wrap the ribs tightly in aluminum foil and place them on a baking sheet.

Bake the ribs for 2.5-3 hrs., or until the meat is tender and starting to pull away from the bones.

While the ribs are cooking, prepare the Apple Butter BBQ sauce. In a saucepan, combine the apple butter, BBQ sauce, apple cider vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce.

Simmer the sauce over medium-low heat for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it thickens slightly.

Once the ribs are tender, remove them from the oven and increase the temperature to 400°F.

Carefully open the foil packets and brush the ribs generously with the Apple Butter BBQ sauce.

Return the ribs to the oven, uncovered, and bake for an additional 10-15 min, or until the sauce is caramelized and slightly charred in spots.

Remove from the oven, let rest for 5-10 min, then cut into portions and serve with extra sauce on the side.

Apple Chicken Sausages

Prep Time: 10 min.

Cook Time: 15 min.

Total Time: 25 min.

Servings: 4

1 lb. ground chicken

1 apple, peeled and grated

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. onion powder

1/4 tsp. dried thyme

1 T. olive oil (for cooking)

In a bowl, mix ground chicken, grated apple, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and thyme.

Form the mixture into small sausage patties.

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.

Cook the sausages for 5-7 min. on each side, until browned and cooked through.

Serve hot with your favorite sides. Enjoy!

Quote of the Week:

“Autumn whispered to the wind, ‘I fall but always rise again.”  

   ~ Angie Weiland-Crosby (Autumn begins 9/22)