Okay, I need some help. This week, my sister-in-law Diana and I found a little apple orchard in Sandy. It was tiny and quaint -- so cute. Well, we ended up picking 30 pounds of Golden Delicious apples, which are now sitting in a huge box on my counter.I have already made 3 recipes, and I have barely put a dent in the apple stash.
What are some things I could do? Should I make applesauce? Should I try to make apple pie filling and store it in jars? I could really use some suggestions.
In the meantime, I thought I'd post the recipes I used, with some notes, for other apple-enthusiasts.
This was SUPER yummy, but I really like raisins and nuts, so you'll have to decide if it sounds like you'll like it. I used toasted pecans, and I baked it in a 9" round pan. I was hoping to make a bundt, but there actually wasn't that much batter when the ingredients were mixed. Next time I make this, I will probably double it and bake it in a bundt pan. It would make a really good holiday breakfast for a my family (10-13 people) if doubled (or maybe tripled).
This one was more popular with my taste-testers (aka a bunch of Reed's friend who were over for a Windows 7 release party), and I think it's because there were no nuts or raisins. (The recipe calls for nuts, but I left them out because I was already making a recipe with pecans.) Again, I baked it in a 9" round, because again, there was less batter than I expected. When fully baked, the center was very thin, and it smooshed a little bit when I turned it out onto a plate for serving. I would definitely double this recipe next time.
That said, it was very moist and yummy. Next time, I will double it, make it in a square 8x8 pan, add some kind of crumble topping on top, and serve it in squares right from the pan. Again, it'd make a cute breakfast for Christmas morning or something.
This recipe was a winner, but I guess it's kind of hard to go wrong with apple crisp. I only had 1/8 Cup of butter left ( after all the crazy baking), but the recipe still turned out just fine. Again, I will double, triple, or even quadruple this recipe next time, depending on the situation. It just did not make very much: maybe enough for about 5-6 portions with a scoop of ice cream, so great for a smaller party.
6 comments:
I have found memories of canning apple pie filling with your mom. I think we worked through an entire school day and had about 8-9 quarts each to show for it. It was fun to share the experience, but would I do it now? Never. I'm way too lazy. I used to do quarts of applesauce when my kids were little. Again, it was a ton of work, and again, I am way too lazy now.
My suggestion? Share the wealth and make new friends (or make old friends better friends). After all, there's an OT scripture mastery about how to serve is better than to sacrifice oneself over a hot stove, or something like that. Of course, you might take that as meaning serving up your homemade goods. It's a conundrum.
At the risk of inundating your blog with Judy Comments, I just ran across a recipe that I thought looked rather yummy. Go to Allrecipes.com and search for Sarah's Applesauce. Five stars with 606 reviews--it's gotta be good, and it is a lot less time consuming than canning. (However, only four apples used, so perhaps adjust the recipe to serve 40.)
I usually just do jam, but I love apple butter. My family also loves Senegalese Apple Soup (look it up at myrecipes.com). I'd put in about twice as many as called for.
Canning is good, especially when Cal decides he wants to eat solids. Another thing you can do is peel, core, slice and freeze the apples. Then you have apples all ready at your fingertips to make those delicious recipes all year round! It is a lot of work, but when you go to make something with apples in it and you don't have to peel, core and slice then, it is well worth it!
You should give some apples to me!
You should definitely cook, puree and freeze some for Cal when he starts to eat solids! Apples from orchards where you pick them yourself are nice because they usually don't use as many pesticides, and they don't wax the peels. In Japan apples are SOOOOO expensive when they're not in season, so I try to find ways to preserve them when they are. I know it's not the same in the states, but it's nice to know you're eating produce that's meant for this time of year. :)
Anyway, for homemade baby food you could try a few variations. I usually steam the apples and then puree them alone, or with one or more of the following:
Blueberries
Strawberries
A dash of cinnamon
Oatmeal (cooked oats or Iron-fortified baby cereal both work)
Bananas (it will turn brown in the freezer, but it isn't bad for your baby)
Avocado (again, turns brown, not bad for baby)
and anything else you can think of! Freezing is nice because you don't have to add sugar to preserve them. Kids in the US get too much sugar in their diets already. Better to hold off on sugar as looooong as you can, and get him used to eating foods without. Happy apple-ing! :)
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