Apple Butter

I bought a bushel of apples.  Do you know how much that is?  Like 100 apples.  That's a TON of apples.  So what did I do with them?  I steamed a bunch and blended it into sugar free applesauce (totally delicious, add some cinnamon and you've got a nice little treat!), I dehydrated a ton (soak in lemon juice/water before dehydrating to keep them from turning too brown), and then made some apple butter.  It was really good and even though it will only last 2 weeks or so, it was totally worth it for those Sundays when I have freshly baked whole wheat bread to put it on.

I found the recipe here.

Slow Cooker Apple Butter
(I halved the recipe)

6 1/2 pounds apples - peeled, cored and sliced (if I remember correctly, for half I used 10 apples.  And trust me, that is a SHIZ LOAD to cut and peel)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves (I didn't have these so I just didn't use them)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

1. Place the apples in a slow cooker. In a medium bowl, combine sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg cloves and salt. Pour the mixture over the apples and mix well.
2. Cook in slow cooker on low for about 10 hours, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is thickened and dark brown. (I did this overnight).
3. Uncover, stir in vanilla and continue cooking uncovered on low for about 2 hours. (I screwed this up and actually added the vanilla before I cooked it.  It wasn't a big deal)
4. Use an immersion blender to puree the apple butter until smooth.
5. Spoon the mixture into sterile containers, cover and refrigerate for up to two weeks or freeze.
6. Serve on breads, muffins, pork chops or just eat it with a spoon.

Pretty dang good!

Mango Chicken Skewers

We are loving our grill.  In fact, I learned how to use it this week and make some mango chicken skewers.  It was perfect.  I had mango and green peppers in my basket this week.  It was like it was meant to be.  And can I just say, they were A.MAZE.ING.  I normally don't like cooked fruit, so I was worried about the mangoes, but they were perfect.  The whole situation was perfect.  These will definitely be a new favorite around here.  (And this is a soy-free recipe that Brooklyn could also eat!)

I found the recipe here.

Mango Chicken Skewers

Ingredients

• 6 Tbs. olive oil
• ¼ cup fresh lime juice (I think I used 2-3 limes)
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• ½ tsp. cayenne pepper
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 Tbs. sugar
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 3 ripe but firm mangoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch cubes
• Bell peppers, optional

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, mix together the spices, and lime juice. Immerse the chicken and mangoes in the mixture and marinate for 2-4 hours, covered, in the refrigerator. (I only marinated for about 1 hour cuz I didn't prepare enough ahead.  And I didn't do the mangoes cuz I didnt want them to get soggy).
2. Prepare a hot grill, line the grill with a strip of foil on one end to prevent the bottom of the skewers from burning. (I didn't do this either, I just loaded the sticks almost clear to the end with food).
3. Take the skewers and alternately place pieces of chicken, mango and peppers. (Brooklyn loved doing this part).
4. Arrange the skewers evenly on the grill. Turn them once while cooking and cook until cooked through and nicely charred. 6-10 minutes. Remove from grill and serve immediately.

5 stars.  Easily.

Banana Bread (Heaven)

Seriously.  A.MAZE.ING.  Enough said.  And I'm sure it's super healthy.  This recipe will change your life.  Go grab those bananas that are starting to get brown spots (cuz seriously, even one brown spot means it's time to bake it or freeze it) and whip these up.  You will not be sad.  I even got Brooklyn to eat all her dinner in anticipation of trying this special treat!

(The pictures within the recipe are copied with the recipe, they are not my own)

Ingredients:

Banana Bread Bars:

1-1/2 c. sugar

1 c. sour cream

1/2 c. butter, softened

2 eggs

1-3/4 (3 or 4) ripe bananas, mashed

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 c. all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. salt

1/2 c. chopped walnuts (optional)

Brown Butter Frosting:

1/2 c. butter

4 c. powdered sugar

1-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

3 tbsp. milk

Directions:

1.  Heat oven to 375F.  Grease and flour 15x10-inch jelly roll pan.  For the bars, in a large bowl, beat together sugar, sour cream, butter, and eggs until creamy.  Blend in bananas and vanilla extract.  Add flour, baking soda, salt, and blend for 1 minute.  Stir in walnuts.

2.  Spread batter evenly into pan.  Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.

3.  Meanwhile, for frosting, heat butter in a large saucepan over medium heat until boiling.  Let the butter turn a delicate brown and remove from heat immediately.

4.  Add powdered sugar, vanilla extract and milk.  Whisk together until smooth (it should be thicker than a glaze but thinner than frosting).  Using a spatula, spread the brown butter frosting over the warm bars (the frosting will be easier to spread while the bars are still warm). 

Yield: 2 dozen large bars

Rating:  DEFINITELY 5 stars.  And honestly, I think I undercooked them a little... remember, I am still living with only a toaster oven.  Only 2 more weeks of that!  The undercooked-ness was perfect!

Healthy Banana Bread

Once again, trying to use up my produce from my Bountiful Basket, but trying to stay healthy.  So I made this healthy banana bread.

I decided to double the recipe so I could share with some friends (and use up these bananas!)  Since I only have one bread pan, I made half the batter in muffin tins and made banana muffins.  So delicious!

Ingredients

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup sugar free applesauce
• 3/4 cup honey
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 3 mashed overripe bananas

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan and/or muffin tins.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, mix together applesauce and honey. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.
3. Bake bread in preheated oven for 60 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack. 
4. Bake muffins in same oven for 15-20 minutes.  

Rating:  3.8 stars.  In terms of health food, absolutely delicious.  Compared to banana chocolate chip bread?  Not so good.  Worth making when looking for a healthy alternative.  But won't necessarily satisfy that sweet tooth.