Fresh Apple Pound Cake

Its almost Spring.  I know some of you are already enjoying Spring weather and Spring flowers but here in Western New York, all the way up, near Canada, there are only whispers of Spring.  Usually, I would be dreading the warmer weather that is to come.  I know, shocking, since everyone seems to enjoy warmer weather.  Don't get me wrong.  I like 70's kind of weather a lot!  It's the 85 and above with humidity that is not my favorite. This year however, I have started a new look: being grateful. Being grateful for every moment, rain or shine, snow or whatever.  Besides, putting up with those days of humidity mean all those beautiful fruits and vegetables that are to come.  Yeah!

Not far from where my brother and sister in law live is Sevierville, TN.  In Sevierville is a store called The Apple Barn, Cidermill and General Store.  My Mom picked up a cookbook from there a few years back.  She recently made this amazing cake.  I had to share a virtual slice with you.  I do tend to cut back on sugar a bit in recipes but dont do it in this one.  The cake does not taste sweet so you really need the glaze.  The glaze totally brings everything together and makes it taste fabulous. This would be an awesome cake for a brunch, goes great with coffee.  


Fresh Apple Pound Cake
Fresh Apple Pound Cake with Brown Sugar topping

Ingredients
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups corn oil
2 cups sugar
3 large eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups pecans, finely chopped
2 cups pared apples, finely chopped

Brown Sugar Topping ingredients:
1/2 cup butter or margarine
2 teaspoons milk
1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed

Instructions
Sift flour, soda and salt onto a platter or waxed paper. In a large bowl beat oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla at medium speed of electic mixer for 3 or 4 minutes until well blended. Gradually add flour mixture; beat until smooth. Fold in pecans and apples. Pour batter into a greased and floured bundt pan. Bake in a preheated 325 oven about 1 hour 20 minutes, or until cake tests done. Cool on wire rack 20 minutes. Serve warm or cold. Store in foil or tin can for a day or two. Brown Sugar topping: Combine all ingredients and bring to a boil over medium heat; cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Spoon hot sugar mixture over warm cake.
Yield: one 10" bundt cake, 22 to 24 servings

Rye and Pear Crepes

I have really tried to snap a good pic of these delicious crepes but something always goes wrong.  Believe me I have made them several times.  They are just that good.

Gotta run!  Off to bake Christmas cookies!

Rye Crepes With Sautéed Pears

Recipe adapted from PBS- Kitchen Vignettes.  I have made these both with sautéed pears or apples.  Both delicious. 

3/4 cup unbleached white flour
3/4 cup rye flour
1 3/4 cups milk
3 large eggs
2 tablespoons melted butter
1/2 teaspoon salt

For the Filling:
4 tablespoons butter for cooking
8 oz grated smoked Gouda
6 medium large pears, sliced thinly with skins on

Sift together the rye and unbleached white flours. In a large bowl, add the salt, the flours and whisk together well. Crack the eggs into the flour and add a bit of the milk. Begin to stir the mixture with a whisk or a wooden spoon. It will be hard at first, but stir well, gradually adding the milk in small increments and mixing between each addition. The batter will become smoother and smoother. If you add the milk too quickly, you will have lumps in your batter (which you can always strain out).

When the batter is completely smooth and mixed, cover it and let it stand for a minimum of 30 minutes and up to 60 minutes. You can even make the batter a day in advance and let it rest in the fridge.  Add the melted butter into the batter when you are ready to make the crepes.

Heat a large skillet on medium heat.  Once your pan has heated up (about 3 minutes), place a teaspoon in the pan and swirl it around to cover the bottom of the skillet. It should sizzle a little.

Ladle in about 1/4 cup of batter and quickly swirl the batter around to cover the whole bottom of the pan. Once the top of the crepe has cooked (no longer liquid), check to see if the bottom is browning. Once it has browned a bit, you can carefully loosen the crepe using a spatula, and flip it over.

If the pears you're using are nice and juicy, you don't need to pre-cook them. However, if your pears are on the dry side, sauté them lightly in a small skillet on medium heat in 1 Tbsp. butter. Cook them just until their juices are released and they have softened somewhat (about 3 minutes).

To assemble, place a cooked crepe in the crepe skillet and scatter some smoked Gouda cheese down the center of the crepe. Add a generous amount of sliced pears, and fold each side of the crepe towards the center. Allow the crepe to cook a bit more until the Gouda in the middle has melted.

Apple Cake

I had surgery this past week, so not too much baking and cooking going on here.  It is hard to chop things with one hand, especially round things, like onions.  My surgery was pretty simple, carpal tunnel and ulnar release.  All went well.  I was in good hands.  It was very fascinating experience. 

The nerve block they gave me- totally amazing.  Have you heard of that?  I never had. Essentially they block the area that will be operated on.  Totally dead, lifeless arm.  Very bizarre to have it flailing about.  My daughter repositioned me through the night.  What a good girl. 

I learned what it was like to have the other members of my family be caregivers to Mama...  I think they may need some more training.  I will just leave it at that.

While not having an arm, I thought many times what life would be like to not have a limb, with no hope of it returning.  I have always been impressed by that.  These are some of the true heroes.  Mind you I have many more heroes like that.... caregivers who deal with a loved ones illness day in and day out.  People who face life debilitating illness themselves day in and day out.  The list goes on.  Some pretty amazing people out there who fight the fight every day.

Now, how about some cake? This is seriously moist and flavorful.  It does not disappoint.

Apple Cake

1 cup vegetable oil
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 baking apples such as Granny Smith peeled, cored, and cut into 1/4” dice
1 cup chopped pecans
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 


Preheat the oven to 350°F and lightly grease a 9x13 pan.

In a large bowl, stir by hand the oil, melted butter, eggs, sugar, and vanilla. Stir in the apple and pecans. Add the flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon to the bowl, and then stir until combined. This is a very thick batter, in fact it’s more like a cookie batter.

Spoon the batter into the baking pan or skillet, patting down the top so it’s even. Bake for 40-45 minutes until the top is lightly browned and an inserted knife comes out clean.

Roasted Autumn Vegetables With Rosemary

I love this kind of dish in the Fall! Comforting autumn vegetables roasted with rosemary.  A-mazing! The house was filled with wonderful aromas.  The thing that really makes this dish pop for me, is the apples and the rosemary.  I loved having a fork with a piece of an apple and a piece of the squash.  Apples and butternut squash go so good together. With the potatoes, a nice chunk of garlic.

Roasted Autumn Vegetables
You can adjust your amounts of vegetables.  I have a huge baking sheet that I like to fill up.

2 cups of chopped butternut squash
5 medium sized red potatoes
3 Granny Smith apples
5 cloves garlic, halved
2 cups of chopped pumpkin
5 carrots, sliced in chunks
2-3 tablespoons rosemary
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon Kosher salt

In a large bowl, toss the vegetables and apples with rosemary, olive oil and salt.  Roast in a 375F oven until lightly golden.  Stir about 20 minutes in.  The total time is around 40 minutes.  More time if you have a lot of vegetables.

Canning Applesauce

When you are given a bunch of apples.  You have only on thing to do after you say, thank you very much.  Make applesauce! Then you can have it already instead of going to the store and buying one of those watered down versions of apple sauce that they have in the store.

I don't know exactly why I have never posted my applesauce.  I have been making it all my life, as a kid and then as an adult with a family of my own.   Its one of the easiest things to can for a beginner.  There is such a high acid level in apples that it really lends itself to this type of canning.

 Aren't they beautiful?

I kept singing while I was making apples,  "God didn't make little green apples and it don't rain in Indianapolis in the summer time."  Just in case you don't know what I am talking about, have a listen...

APPLESAUCE

1/2 bushel of apples ( a mix of different kids is the best)*
2 cups sugar (optional)
3 tablespoons lemon juice of 1 teaspoon citric acid (kinda optional)**

Canning equipment (the usual cast of characters)
canner
jars
lids
rings
canning jars

Sometimes I leave my rings off once the jars have sealed.

Cut up apples into quarters or halves and place in a large pot.  Start it off on a low heat to get the apples heated without burning it.  Stir regularly.  Once it gets going and there is some juice on the bottom, then you can turn your heat up to medium. Or even medium high if you keep an eye on it.  Cook until tender.  Blend and pour into jars. 

Place lids on jars and screw down tops.  Place in hot water.  The water should be over the jars by an inch.  Bring to boil.  Boil for 20 minutes.  Remove from pot place on counter to cool.  Enjoy the pleasing popping sound the jars make as they seal. Before putting them away make sure lids depress to show they have sealed. I let them cool over night. Check to make sure they have all sealed in the morning by pushing down on the tops. If it pops up then it has not sealed.  Place in your refrigerator and enjoy eating it.

If you see the applesauce has seeped out a little while in the canning process, don't fret, wipe it down good after it has sealed and it is still fine to put on the shelf.

*You can start with how many apples you like.  When it is made into sauce that will give you an idea of how many pints or quarts you get out of it. 

**Citric acid or lemon juice will help keep the apples white.  It slows down that browning process. You don't have to put it in because the apples have enough acid.

I don't really use my pour spout a lot because I prefer to just wipe them down as it is faster.  In the case of applesauce, it plops into jars.  So much easier to use this.

New England Apple Cake

 

My mother found this recipe years ago and has made it every year in the fall ever since.  It is really a moist and delicious cake. Prune puree was big in the 90's and it kind of went out of fashion.  It is still very delicious but I don't know if you can find jars of it anymore.  Maybe the baby food aisle.  Or you can easily puree your own.  Add a little water to get it going.  Not too much though. I have used my canned plums as well.

New England Apple Cake

I guess the original recipe is by Geneva Hultenius. You will find the cake seems very dry in the mixing stage.  Doesn't seem like it has enough wet ingredients but it does.  The apples moisten everything as it bakes.

1 cup sugar (I use 3/4 of a cup)
1 egg
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup prune puree*
1 1/2 cup unbleached flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2teaspoon salt
2 cup chopped apples
1/2  cup chopped walnuts

Topping
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoon sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour an 8- X 8-inch square pan and put aside. In large mixing bowl combine sugar, egg, butter and prune puree. Mix on high speed for 2 minutes. Fold in the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Mix just until flour is moist. Fold in the chopped apples and walnuts. Pour batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the top of cake batter with the sugar-cinnamon mixture. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool cake in pan on wire rack.

Nutritional information per serving: 240 calories; 4 g fat; 30 mg cholesterol; 240 mg sodium, 49 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 4 g protein


* Prune puree: Combine 1 1/3 cups (8 ounces) pitted prunes and 6 Tbs hot water in container of food processor, puree until smooth. Makes 1 cup. Keep refrigerated for up to 2 months in a tightly sealed container.

Apple Cinnamon Sauce

This morning I was helping my daughter pack her lunch to expedite the process.  She is a tweener.  That really should be all I need to say for you Mothers out there that understand the life of living with a tween. Sometimes she is my best friend and sometimes her evil twin takes over and she is anything but a friend.  She is a vegetarian and now and her BFF is allergic to peanut butter.  That makes finding healthy, satisfying food difficult to find.  So I said that to her this morning as I told her what else could we find for her lunch that would hold her over her whole day plus play practice after school or even a snack that she could have to tide her over until dinner.  So she lays this comment on me, curt and sarcastic.  I look at her with shock.  I said I was trying to help you understand what it is like for me in trying to come up with things for you to eat. Then I lost it. Not as in yelling but rather crying because no matter how hard I try to help them, sometimes it feels like it is never enough.  No it most often feels like it is never enough. I think that is one of the hardest things for me as a Mom. I left the room and calmly said, "you can finish packing your lunch then." No apologies for her curt comments and lately there have been a lot of them directed at all of us, really.  She left the house never even saying goodbye. Sigh.

I think I meant to tell you about these months ago.  They just got buried in the pool of stuff to do.  In any case you can book mark it for next apple season.  Or if apples are still around you can make some of these nice little treats for yourself now.

Maybe she could pack these in her lunch...  She, of course, not me.

CINNAMON RED HOT CANDY APPLES
Makes 7 pints

3 1/2 cups sugar
5 cups water
Cinnamon red hot candies
8 to 10 large apples, peeled and cored apples and sliced into thick wedges

Bring the sugar and water to a boil. Cover and set aside.

Fill canner with water and begin to heat.

In 7 wide mouth pint jars, add cinnamon red hot candies – use according to your liking. A couple tablespoons- more or less. Then pack apple wedges into jars, as many as you can fit in a jar.  Leave 1/2 inch at top of jars empty. Fill jars with simple syrup up to within a quarter inch of top of jar. Place lids and rings on.

Place jars in a hot water bath. Bring to a boil. Start timing for 20 minutes once the boil begins. Turn off heat and let sit for 10 minutes uncovered. Remove jars and place on towel on top of counter. Make sure each jar has sealed. This can take up to two hours.  If there is no seal, keep unsealed jars in fridge for up to two weeks before using.

Healthy Muffins

These are not your average cardboard healthy muffins.  Really, they are delicious especially if you are not use to eating tons of sugar.  Only two tablespoons of oil and very little sugar.  A great treat in the morning with a cup of coffee or tea.



HEALTHY MUFFINS
Best if eaten within three days

3/4 apple juice or orange juice (whatever you have on hand- I used mango peach juice)
3/4 cup raisins
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
1 1/4 cup chopped apples
2 tablespoons molasses or honey or even agave syrup
2 tablespoons oil (something mild in flavor like vegetable safflower....)
1 1/2 cups oat bran cereal (Fiber One, Aldi's brand, something with flakes)
1 cup milk
1 egg
1 3/4 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

*My neighbor adds a banana into it as well.  

Mix dry ingredients (except nuts, raisins and apples) in a small bowl or larger measuring cup.  Mix wet ingredients with a whisk.  Pour dry ingredients into wet. Stir until combined, do not over mix.  Fold in raisins, walnuts and chopped apple. Spoon into sprayed muffin tin (or you can use papers as well).  Bake at 350F for about twenty minutes.  Cool on wire rack for five minutes then remove from tin.