chicken sautéed with apples

This chicken recipe is simple, flavorful, and only requires the stove top.

CHICKEN SAUTEED WITH APPLES
From Real Simple

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded to an even thickness
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 firm apples (Braeburn, Granny Smith, etc.), cored, halved, and sliced
1 cup apple juice or apple cider
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, minced
½ tsp thyme
½ tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard

HEAT oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute chicken until golden brown, about three minutes on each side.

ADD apple slices, apple juice, onion, garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper. Simmer, covered, 6-8 minutes or until chicken is fork-tender.

REMOVE chicken, apples and onion. Set aside and bring sauce to a boil for about 5 minutes or until slightly reduced. Whisk in the mustard and pour sauce over the chicken.

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homemade apple cake sauce

This sauce is meant to be served over apple cake.

HOMEMADE APPLE CAKE SAUCE

1 cup sugar
½ cup butter
½ cup heavy cream or evaporated milk
1 tsp vanilla

STIR all ingredients in a saucepan.

BOIL over medium high heat, cooking for 3 minutes.

COOL slightly, stirring to combine, and serve over apple cake.

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apple cake

This cake is simple and easy to make. You can serve it by itself, with a homemade sauce, or with ice cream.

APPLE CAKE
from Cross Stitch Magazine

4 cups peeled, sliced apples
2 cups sugar
2 cups flour
1½ tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
¾ cup vegetable oil
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped pecans

STIR apples and sugar in a large bowl. Add dry ingredients.

BEAT eggs, oil, and vanilla in a separate bowl. Stir egg mixture into apple mixture, blending until thoroughly moistened. Stir in pecans.

BAKE in a greased 9x13 pan at 350°F degrees for 50 minutes. Serve warm with homemade sauce.

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brussels sprouts with bacon and apple

When you add bacon and apples to Brussels sprouts, no one will complain about Brussels sprouts for dinner!

BRUSSELS SPROUTS WITH BACON AND APPLE
from Martha Stewart

3 slices bacon, cut into ½ inch pieces
4 pints Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
coarse salt and ground pepper
1 apple, cored and cut into ¼ inch slices and halved crosswise
2 tsp red wine vinegar

ARRANGE bacon in a single layer on a large rimmed baking sheet. Bake at 425°F until browned, about 10 minutes.

ADD Brussels sprouts in a single layer. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast until they begin to brown, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven and toss in apple. Return to oven and roast until Brussels sprouts are browned and apple has softened, 10-15 minutes.

TOSS vegetables with vinegar and serve immediately.

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apple cake

As a child, I loved cooking shows. I remember watching The Frugal Gourmet with awe. The best part was having all the ingredients premeasured and on display in small glass bowls. I used to ask my mom to let me play cooking show—it meant I made a lot of extra dishes from all those small bowls and that I talked to an imaginary audience on the other side of our peninsula.

In the past 7 years, only one place I have lived had a dishwasher. So while I currently own a cute set of nesting glass bowls that would be perfect for all the ingredients in a recipe, I have no desire to play cooking show. In fact, I haven’t watched a cooking show in ages. Some rant and rave about The Food Network, but I am largely unaware of celebrity chefs. The following recipe is the first recipe I’ve ever made from Emeril Lagasse. I would have never found this recipe except that a friend made the cake this past weekend; it was so wonderfully moist and tasty that I had to have the recipe. While it is officially a “coffee cake,” it does double duty as an evening dessert.

APPLE CAKE
from Emeril Lagasse

¾ cup butter, softened and divided
2 ½ cups brown sugar
2 eggs
2 ½ cups flour, divided
1 tsp baking soda
1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon, divided
½ tsp salt
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 cups peeled, cored and chopped apples
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbsp water

CREAM ½ cup butter and 1 ½ cups brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating after the addition of each. In a separate bowl, sift together 2 cups flour, baking soda, 1 tsp cinnamon, and salt. Add to the wet ingredients, alternating with the sour cream and vanilla. Fold in the apples. Pour into a greased 9 x 13 pan, spreading out to the edges.

COMBINE ½ cup brown sugar, ½ cup flour, ½ tsp cinnamon, and ¼ cup butter in a small bowl, mixing until it resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle the topping over the cake and bake at 350°F for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown and set.

DRIZZLE slightly cooled cake with glaze made from ½ cup brown sugar, ½ tsp vanilla, and 2 Tbsp water. Let harden slightly. Serve warm.

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bavarian apple torte

Sometimes I wonder about the names of recipes. This tried and true recipe has a fancy name, but the name is taken straight from the pages of Taste of Home magazine. What makes it a torte and not a cheesecake, I don't know. Apples and cinnamon isn't a combination I would have placed on top of a cheesecake-like base, but this is incredible. I bought a springform pan just so I could make this dessert. If at all possible, splurge (in China) to buy tart apples. And then eat a slice or two while you're making the torte and marvel at the wonderfulness that is a tart apple.

BAVARIAN APPLE TORTE (serves 12-14)

crust:
¾ cup butter or margarine, softened
½ cup sugar
1 ½ cup flour
½ tsp vanilla extract

filling:
2 packages (8oz each) cream cheese, softened
¼ cup sugar
2 eggs
¾ tsp vanilla extract

topping:
3 cups thinly sliced peeled tart apples
½ cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

COMBINE the first four ingredients. Press onto the bottom of an ungreased 9 inch springform pan.

BEAT cream cheese and sugar in a mixing bowl. Add eggs and vanilla; mix well. Pour over the crust.

COMBINE topping ingredients; arrange* over filling. Bake at 350°F degrees for 55-65 minutes or until the center is set. Cool on a wire rack. Store in the refrigerator. Cut into wedges with a serrated knife.

*the recipe calls for you to spoon the apples on top. My mother decided that was lame and arranged hers in concentric circles. (She is more artistic than she lets on.) I've kept with her alteration, arranging my apple slices one at a time, starting with the outer circle, and overlapping slightly until you get to the center. (Truth be told, I cut the apples smaller in the center to make the innermost ring, then place another apple slice, cut into a small circle, in the center.) The end result resembles a flower.

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