Save the Fruit!

I think it's safe to say we have established food must never be thrown away, unless it's blue and fuzzy, of course. No one wants to spend a few quality hours with their toilet, so if it's not safe to eat, trash it. This creates an issue for me, however, as I love to buy fruit. I enjoy seeing it sit prettily in my fruit basket on the counter. I then watch it turn brown, because I don't eat it fast enough. I guess that makes me a fruit mass murderer. Guilty as charged.

I decided, no more! I would not let beautiful fruit die in the bowl and be sent to that big dumpster in the sky. I would learn to use my fruit, even if I don't eat it fresh. That's where today's blog comes in.

Saving the Fruit

Over the Christmas holiday, I displayed some lovely apples on a three-tiered glass fruit tray that has been in my family for at least fifty years. It sat in the middle of my mother's table, and I'm honored to carry on her tradition year after year. I simply love it. After the holiday was over, however, I noticed my fruit  was looking a little sad. Apples a bit past their peak freshness are perfect for making applesauce, so I whipped out ye ole crock-pot and started peeling and coring them.

Next, I put the apples into my crock pot and added about 1/4 cup of spiced apple cider from Trader Joe's (TJ's has the best cider on the planet), and sprinkled liberally with cinnamon. As I've said, I adore cinnamon. If you aren't a fan, it's still tasty without adding so much. 

I cooked this on low heat for about 5 hours. You'll know when it's done, because the apples will turn to mush. Use a wooden or plastic spoon and gently stir your apples. I like mine a little lumpy, but you could let your cooked apples cool and puree in a food processor. The first night after cooking, we served this as a side for our New Year's Day supper. 

I had plenty left over, so a few days later, I made applesauce muffins. I used the recipe from Williams-Sonoma, and they were pretty tasty. See recipe here. My only complaint is that I would probably use brown sugar instead of white next time. I like a molasses taste in my apple muffins. I also substituted pecans in place of walnuts. They were quite yummy!

You can cut back on the cider and use water if you want to avoid added sugar and this makes a perfect homemade baby food. My little man adores cooked apples! 

Leave a comment below and tell us how you use your aging fruit!

Fondly,

Amanda Z

Domesticology