No, not that kind of getting baked, silly!  I’m talking about apples! Remember how I said that I was slacking in the apple recipe making/baking department in comparison to some of my fellow food bloggers?  Well, slow and steady wins the race and I’m making a go at the apple recipe cooking finish line (if there is such a thing?).  Because I used only one apple in my previous recipe and still have a million (not a lie) left in my crisper, I wanted to find a dish that would call for the usage of multiple apples.  Hence, I scoured the internet and did hours of research (total lie) until I found this gem…

Getting Baked Apples
Adapted from SimplyRecipes.com
Serves 4

• 4 large good baking apples (I bucked the trend and used McIntosh apples, which is not recommended for baking)
• 1/4 cup of rolled oats
• 1 TBSP of evaporated cane juice (I used Florida Crystals, feel free to use dry sweetener of your choice)
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• sprinkle of nutmeg
• 14 raw almonds, chopped (you could use pecans, walnuts or no nuts)
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries, chopped (dried apricots, raisins, dried figs would be good here, too)
• 1 TBSP of peanut butter (I used Trader Joe’s Valencia Peanut Butter with Roasted Flaxseeds)
• 3/4 cup boiling water

1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Wash and dry your apples.  Using an apple corer or paring knife, remove the cores to 1/2 inch of the bottom of the apples.  Be careful not to cut all the way through to the bottom (I confess, I did this once)!  Then, use a paring knife to widen the cavity and a spoon to scoop out the seeds.  It’s a tad tricky at first, but you’ll get the hang of it.  Make the cavity about 3/4 inch to an inch wide.

2) In a small bowl, combine the oats, evaporated cane juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, almonds and dried cranberries.

3) Place the apples in an 8 x 8 baking dish.  Fill each apple with the mixture and then dot the top of each apple with 1/4 of the TBSP of peanut butter.

4) Pour the boiling water into the baking dish.  Bake for 30-40 minutes, until the apples can be easily pierced with a knife, but not mushy.  While the apples are baking, be sure to baste the apples with the dish juices (I repeated this three different times).

5) Serve hot!

These baked apples were like whoa! I couldn’t believe how good they tasted for something that was so simple to make.  I really liked the fact that even though the apples were stuffed with goodies like cinnamon, nutmeg and dried cranberries, the natural sweetness of my personally picked produce still shined through.  And, the McIntosh apples stood up quite well in the oven.  They came out tender and did not fall apart.  So take that, you online apple experts (whoever the heck you are)!  This is one of the best DPAABs (dessert-parading-around-as-breakfast) I’ve had in a long time.  While it’s quite similar in taste to the healthified fruit crisp I made a few weeks ago, the sheer fact that I was eating a whole piece of baked fruit made this dish stand out from anything else I have ever made.  Plus, having to eat this dessert/breakfast with a fork and knife made me feel as if I was having an entire meal, versus just a snack.

And because this is a healthy food blog and I like to give recipes my own little twist, I decided to substitute the brown sugar for evaporated cane juice and reduce the amount.  And to make the dish even heartier, I decided to add one of my favorite foods, oatmeal! Instead of dabbing the tops of the apples with butter, I used a natural peanut butter.  It’s less greasy and adds more flavor to the recipe.  The original recipe called for serving this dish with vanilla ice cream, which is a tremendous call.  However, I didn’t have any on hand (just cookies and cream ) and figured a dollop of thick greek yogurt would be the next best thing.  You could also drizzle some honey or agave nectar over the entire apple for some additional sweetness, but my apples didn’t require it.  Plus, I had some of the oatmeal mixture leftover, so I sprinkled some over the greek yogurt.  I’m not gonna lie, it was a stroke of genius on my behalf…just sayin’.

Who says eating food can’t get you high?

Random question: Is there a recipe or dish that you are intimidated to make?  Or, what is the one recipe you’ve been dying to make but just haven’t had the chance to do so?

Namasté,
Nicole

I have fond memories of my dad eating and loving his apple pie.  Whether it be frozen, fresh from the bakery or homemade, my dad was like a pig in ‘you-know-what’ if he had his hot apple pie and vanilla ice cream.  While he liked the entire pastry, he definitely favored the buttery pie crust over the apple filling.  Often times, when he was done eating, he would leave the apple filling and Healthy Chow would swarm in and gobble up the leftovers.  Yeah, I’m a food scavenger, what of it?

Because fall is finally here, I’m in the mood for foods that are the epitome of this season.  Thus, items like pumpkin, hot chocolate, cinnamon, apples, soups, stews, nutmeg and anything with melted cheese (OK wait, that’s not really ‘fall-esque’.  But melted cheese is grand anytime of the year!) spring to mind and have been springing onto to my plate.

That said, I’ve decided to merge my mood for fall foods with my dad’s love for apple pie.  But, I decided to put a ‘healthier’ spin on this American classic.  I wanted something yummy, sweet, hearty, cinnamon-y and definitely dessert-like, but I didn’t want it to be loaded with butter, sugar and other unnecessary additives.  Plus, my mother-in-law (thanks El!) just gave us a big bag of apples and what better way to enjoy apples than in a crisp?   So I did some researching on my favorite blogs and remembered Lauren’s recent post (Thanks Lauren!), as well as Kath’s post on her friend, Ashley’s, healthy fruit crisp recipe.  Armed with those two recipes, I made some of my own modifications and come up with my version of the beloved fruit crisp.

Healthified Fruit and Peanut Butter Crisp, Oh My!

Serves 8

For the crisp:

• 6 small – medium sized apples, peeled (I used paula apples – you can use any kind of fruit)
• 4 southern peaches, unpeeled (again, you can use any kind of fruit)
• juice of one lemon
• 1 TBSP of cornstarch
• 1 TBSP of evaporated cane juice, I used Florida Crystals (or dry sweetener of your choice)
• dashes of cinnamon
• dashes of nutmeg
• 1 oz. chopped walnuts, 14 halves (pecans or almonds would be good, too)

For the filling:

• 3/4 cup of oatmeal (I used quick cooking oats – I don’t think instant oats would be good here)
• 1/4 cup of whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup of nonfat greek yogurt (I used Trader Joe’s Nonfat Greek Style Plain Yogurt)
• 2 TBSP of Better n’ Peanut Butter, melted (you could use any nut or soy butter here)
• 1 TBSP of ground flaxseed  (I used Trader Joe’s whole golden roasted flaxseeds that I ground)
• 2 TBSP of agave nectar (I used Trader Joe’s brand)
• dashes of cinnamon
• pinch of salt
• cooking spray

1) Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Start prepping your fruit.  Since I used apples, I peeled the skin with a vegetable peeler and then chopped the apples into bite-sized pieces.  With the peaches, I left the skin on and chopped them into pieces similar in size to the apples (bite-sized).

2) Get yourself a large bowl.  Add your fruit and squeeze the lemon juice all over making sure to coat everything.

3) Add the remaining ingredients for the crisp, except for the nuts, to the bowl and gently turn to coat.  Make sure all the fruit is coated with the dry ingredients.  Again, do this with ease as you don’t want to mash your fruit.

4) Then, add your nuts and gently blend the fruit and nuts together. Set your fruit and nut mixture aside.

5) In another bowl, add your peanut butter.  Microwave your peanut butter for 20-25 seconds to melt.

No comments, please

6) Add your oatmeal to your peanut butter.  Mix the peanut butter with the oatmeal with a spoon.  Once the peanut butter and oatmeal are blended, add the rest of your filling ingredients, except for the cooking spray.  Then, take your hands and knead the mixture together until you get a dough-like ball.  Once your dough ball has formed, set aside.

7) Coat a pie dish or baking pan (I used an 11 x 7 x 1.5 glass baking tray) with cooking spray.  Add your fruit filling.

8 ) Take your dough ball and with your hands, begin breaking the dough ball into pieces.  Spread the pieces all over the fruit filling.  Make sure to cover the fruit filling evenly.

9) Place your fruit crisp into the oven.  Let it bake for 40-45 minutes or until you see the fruit starting to bubble.  Once it’s bubbling and looking ‘crisp’ on top, it’s done! Wait about 5 minutes for it to cool (if you can wait that long) and serve with a dollop of Greek yogurt or a scoop of vanilla frozen yogurt or ice cream.  M-m-m-good!

I wish you could have been in my kitchen as this was baking.  The smell of the apples, peaches and cinnamon cooking and blending together was enough for me to check my watch a few hundred times.  It was the longest 40 minutes, ever!  But once my fruit crisp was finally done, it was well worth the wait (can you tell Healthy Chow is a bit impatient?).  The crisp was just crunchy enough but still had a hearty, chewy texture.  You could really taste the flaxseeds and the peanut butter which gave the crisp a unique, unexpected flavor.  The softened fruit simply melted in my mouth.  Isn’t it funny how anything sprinkled with cinnamon and nutmeg can taste so good?

This fruit crisp was not incredibly sweet, which is what I prefer.  If you want a sweeter crisp, I would suggest adding another tablespoon of agave nectar or some more evaporated cane juice to the crisp mixture.  Also, in most fruit crisp recipes, butter or oil is called for in the recipe.  I used peanut butter and nonfat Greek yogurt to substitute for the usual butter and/or oil and I didn’t miss it at all.  It’s a healthy recipe and you’ll feel good (and full) eating it.

As I mentioned earlier, this recipe can be made with any combination of fruit.  Adding berries such as raspberries and or blueberries would add a nice tartness to the crisp.  Kiwi and mango would also be a different spin on the traditional fruit tart and would give it a tropical flair.  In other words, the combinations are endless, so have fun mixing and matching (and eating). This recipe is also quite versatile.  It doesn’t have to be eaten as a dessert, snack and/or breakfast, it can also be used as a warm topping for your hot oatmeal, pancakes or waffles.  No matter if you eat this fruit crisp on it’s own or as an accompaniment, you can be sure there won’t be a bite left for any scavengers to find.

So, how do you like them apples?

Image Credits – blogs.msdn.com

What’s your favorite brand of Greek yogurt?  Can you tell the difference between the brands?  I’m a fan of Trader Joe’s, but I know people can’t seem to get enough of Chobani.

Namasté,
Nicole