Recipes to Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth
Hooray for the season where cinnamon, nutmeg and chai tea rule! Fall is when local fairs bring us delightful goodies like gooey caramel apples. Apple lovers rejoice as this is the season for enjoying apples — over 2,500 varieties in the United States alone.
With a potpourri of varieties available in your supermarket, it’s no wonder finding the right apple for your homemade dishes can be a daunting task. Don’t worry, we got you covered with our easy-peasy quick tips on how to choose the best apples for baking or cooking. When choosing apples, consider your palate – do you prefer sweet, tart or a combination? And what specific dish you will be making:
- Best tart apples for pies and crisps: Braeburn, Cortland, Granny Smith, Jonathan, McIntosh
- Best sweet apples for crusty desserts: Fuji, Golden Delicious, Honeycrisp, Jonagold, Winesap
- Sweet and tart come together: Empire, Gravenstein, Northern Spy
- For cider, apple sauce and salads: Cortland (won’t discolor!), Gala, Honeycrisp, Ida Red, Macoun
Three Apple Recipe Ideas to Inspire and Delight Your Taste Buds
“Baseball, Hot Dogs and Apple Pie”
Nothing is as American as apple pie, so, of course, this dessert tops our list. This apple pie has a delicious twist: Chef John’s Apple Pie has a rich caramel syrup spooned over the top before you place it into a hot oven. This sauce is quickly simmered from sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, butter and salt, and you needn’t labor over sticky flour and butter to make a homemade crust. A simple Pillsbury pie crust does the trick of providing both the shell for filling and strips to lay across the top. Chef John illustrates how to easily use your fingers to crimp the edges. Family and friends will think you spent hours creating this scrumptious pie!
Healthy Apple Salad with Raisins and Walnuts
No longer do you have a reason not to eat healthy due to the weekday rush! This apple salad with raisins and walnuts, featuring spinach, celery and red onion as well as fruit and nuts, packs a delicious and healthy punch to your workday lunch. Requiring less than 15 minutes to prepare, you may be able to bring the ingredients to work and quickly compose this sweet dish in the break room. Add shredded cheddar and/or chicken for a solid kick of protein to help you get through the afternoon hours. Top it off with a yummy Greek yogurt dressing. Quick to prepare, this dressing can be made the night before and stored in your fridge.
Go Team Go! Enjoying Sweet Cider While Watching Your Team Play
As we enter the chilly seasons of sweet drinks to warm our insides, apple cider simmering in the crock pot is a natural party pleaser. This easy apple cider recipe will have your guests salivating as scents of cinnamon, cloves and allspice waft from the crockpot through your home. Who needs beer when adding a slice of orange and spiced rum can bring a smile to satisfied mouths?
Celebrate the season of crisp and tangy apples with these recipes to inspire you! Sweet apples will lift your spirit as the days grow colder and shorter.
