Spiced Applesauce

I love apples in the Fall. The crisp, sweetness and crunchiness of an apple makes for a perfect snack. I especially love apple slices with a smear of peanut butter- delicious! In the grocery store you will find me feeling all of the types of apples looking for the hardest ones I can find because a mushy apple is not acceptable!

This year, I was given three types of apples from friends and neighbors. It is great to have a supply whenever I need a fresh apple! With so many apples though I was concerned about them turning mushy, so what better way to put some to use than applesauce?

I enjoyed cinnamon applesauce in my lunch box as a child. What I particularly remember about applesauce though, was my mom making cookies with applesauce. This was during the low-fat craze and she would replace the butter in cookie dough with applesauce. This made a super moist and chewy cookie. I wasn't sure what I was going to do with my applesauce, but I decided to give it a try and then go from there.

It was actually easy to make applesauce, so easy in fact that I have made two batches so far! It really is much better making it fresh than buying it canned. The flavor is brighter and you can flavor it however you desire. I used apple cider spices and the end product has just the perfect hint of these spices that makes you think of Thanksgiving and is perfect for the fall season.
Some ways that I have used my applesauce that I think you will enjoy too:
Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies from David Lebovitz (I used chocolate chips instead of raisins)
Spiced Applesauce Cake from Smitten Kitchen (so yummy!)
Honey Pumpkin Bread from me! (I used 1/2 cup applesauce and only 1/4 cup of the oil)

Spiced Applesauce
~2-4 pounds apples (or however many it takes to fill your pot), a variety of apples with make the flavor of  the applesauce more complex and add sweetness
Juice from 1/2 a lemon
2-4 cinnamon sticks
4 cloves
1 star anise
1 nutmeg, cut into pieces
1 cup water


1. Peel, core and cut apples into slices. Place in large pot and add spices, lemon juice, and water.

2. Bring mixture to a boil, lower heat and allow to simmer for approximately 30 minutes or until apples are soft*.

3. Remove from heat and allow to cool for several minutes. Remove spice pieces.

4. Puree apple mixture in food processor until smooth. Refrigerate and enjoy!

*If your apples are particularly tart, add 1 tbsp sugar to apples while cooking or omit lemon juice

New Favorite Apple Pie

The Smitten Kitchen is one of my new favorite blog sites that I follow. I love her recipes, pictures and stories of cooking in an apartment in New York with her adorable little boy. Recently she posted a plum and apple pie. Now, I am not much of a pie lover. I will choose cake or cheesecake any day over pie. Apple pie though is a quintessential American food, especially in the fall. This recipe caught my eye because the crust is not pie dough, but more like cookie dough. Yum! Pie dough to me is kind of flavorless, but this dough is a little sweet and really reminds me of a cookie. There is not a bottom crust, so you really get to enjoy the fruit inside the pie. My friend Christina brought me some delicious apples from Washington. I am not sure what type they are, but they are huge! They made a wonderful pie, and I for not being a pie lover I have to admit that I liked this so much I had some pie for breakfast the next day! Enjoy!

Apple Pie
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Top Crust
7 tablespoons (100 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup plus 6 1/2 tablespoons (175 grams) all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon coarse or flaky salt (or less of table salt)
Milk or cream, for brushing crust
Coarse or fine sugar, for sprinkling crust

Filling
4-6 apples, peeled and diced, enough to fill the pie pan
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
Squeeze or two of orange juice

Crust: With a mixer, cream the butter, sugar and orange zest until light and fluffy. Mix in the lightly beaten egg and scrape down sides. Slowly add the flour, baking powder and salt and beat until combined. Scrape dough into a piece of waxed paper or plastic wrap, and stick in the freezer for 10 to 20 minutes, or until firmed up.

Filling: Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a pie pan with cooking spray. Add  the apples to the pan and sprinkle it with the sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and orange juice. Gently toss the ingredients together to combine.

Roll out the dough on a very well floured counter and gently lift it onto the pie and trim the overhang. I had to piece it together because it kept tearing. It comes out looking fine once it cooks. Brush the crust with milk or cream, sprinkle with sugar and bake for 40 minutes, until lightly golden on top. Scoop onto dishes and serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. I also thought a drizzle of caramel sauce would be great on top as well.

Something New

This past few weeks I have been very busy with grad school and last week I had a had a 20+ page paper to work on. I got up early and stayed up late every day trying to get it done. I didn't have time to cook anything, which always makes for a bad week. To me, cooking is doing something nice for myself. The day is always better if I can give myself something homemade and good for my body that I prepared. Thankfully my paper was due yesterday and after I submitted it, I got busy planning on a delicious meal for dinner! I have had a squash sitting on my counter for weeks and I had a pork tenderloin in the freezer so that is where I started.
I didn't grow up eating very much pork, so this past year I have been experimenting with several types of pork like cutlets and tenderloin. I love it because it is very lean, does not take long to cook and takes on the flavor of the spices you put with it. Tenderloin is especially easy to cook and it not very expensive. The spices I used on it made it especially flavorful!
Squash is another food I not have a lot of experience preparing. I looked at several recipes, but nothing really sounded particularly interesting to me. Earlier this month I made baked chicken with apples and shallots, so I decided to use the squash with those ingredients and see how it turned out. Thankfully the result was perfect! The combination paired wonderfully with the pork. This is a delicious winter meal that would be perfect to share with friends and family. I served it with some garlic green beans and creamy risotto. Enjoy!


Balsamic Pork Tenderloin and Winter Squash Medley


Squash Medley (serves 3-4)
1 acorn squash
1 crisp, red apple
1 shallot
1/2 cup fresh cranberries
brown sugar
2 tbsp butter
salt
pepper
cinnamon

Cut squash into slices and then with a paring knife remove the skin and cut into 1 inch cubes. Cut apple into 1 inch cubes (leave on skin). Loose cut shallot into strips. Combine squash, apple, shallot, and cranberries in baking dish. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Cut butter into small pieces and dot squash mixture with the butter. Toss to combine. Bake in 375 degree oven for 30 minutes. Add to oven with pork tenderloin and cook for another 2o minutes at 500 degrees.

Balsamic Pork Tenderloin (serves 3-4)
1 pork tenderloin
olive oil
balsamic vinegar
1 tsp rosemary
1 tsp minced onion
2-4 cloves garlic, diced
Kosher salt
pepper
2 tsp grill seasoning

Heat oven to 500 degrees. With a small paring knife, cut small slits in tenderloin. Coat tennderloin with 1-2 tbsp of balsamic vinegar. Season liberally with salt and pepper. In a small bowl combine 2 tbsp olive oil, garlic, rosemary, onion, grill seasoning. Pour over tenderloin and massage into meat. Cook for 20 minutes. Meat is done when internal temperature reaches 160 degrees. Let meat rest for 10 minutes and then cut into slices and serve.