Personal Apple Pies

October is over. So over. In fact, it's 16 days over.
But..... to conclude AppleFest once and for all (I had so much fun!) I had to share with you these Mini Apple Pies! These babies were so unbelievably easy to make, using fresh apple, and also -- only about 100 calories a pop!

Servings: 8

What You'll Need:

• 1/2 an apple
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• OPTIONAL: 1 teaspoon ground ginger (if you dont have these individual spices, or don't want to buy three spices, you can buy 1 tube of apple pie spice! it has all of the above in one.)
• 1 can Pillsbury Crescents (in the refrigerated section by the dinner rolls!)

The Step-by-Step:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Chop the apple into small pieces and place in a bowl.
3. Add the spices to the apple pieces and stir, until evenly coated.
4. Open the can of crescents and unroll the dough. You'll see that it is already separated into triangle shapes.
5. Take a triangle, place about two spoonfuls of apple mixture at the widest point of the triangle.
6. Roll the dough over the mixture, and keep rolling until you're at the skinny part of the traingle.
7. Use a fork to poke three holes into the top of the pie.
8. Place your "pies" on a flat baking pan, and bake for 15 minutes (make sure to keep an eye on them!)
9. Let cool for 5 minutes before eating.

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The apples cook perfectly -- even in the few minutes in the oven, creating great juices and flavors. Best part -- portion control is built in, so you won't eat too much and regret it later. Make these before friends come over, and you'll impress them with your cooking "skills" -- aren't you glad crescents were invented? Shh, I won't tell :)

xoxo n

Also -- if you didn't get a  chance to see my Instagram video, watch it here to see the step-by-step!

Israeli Cous Cous with Apples & Cranberries

Hi everyone -- made this the other day on a whim and I just had to share. Israeli Cous Cous (its like a happy medium between rice and pasta, and in a ball shape) is delicious! I simply cooked mine in chicken broth, and added in dried canberries and diced apples. It was SOOOO delicious. Sorry, usually I am better at describing the food I make, but literally that is the only word I can think of. I made another batch just a couple of days later, because Austin gobbled up what was in my fridge and it made me sad that there was none left for me! Hahaha. Not to mention -- it takes 20 minutes!

Servings: 4 (makes four side dishes, if you want it to be a main dish, it will only make two servings -- and add a protein like chicken -- yum!)

What You'll Need:

• 2/3 cup Israeli CousCous (sometimes called "Pearl CousCous" -- to get an idea of the price, I got a box of the stuff from Trader Joe's for $2.99 -- totally doable on any budget!)
• 1 cup fat-free chicken broth (such as Swanson's)
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries (Craisin's works!)
• 1/2 an apple
• Pinch of Salt, Pepper, & Garlic Powder
• OPTIONAL: Olive Oil, Crushed Garlic

The Step-by-Step:

1. Heat the chicken broth in a small pot  (the size appropriate for heating a can of soup,) then add the cous cous
2. Stir, and let cook until the liquid almost disappears (about 6-8 minutes)
3. While the cous cous is cooking, take the cranberries and cut them into small pieces, and then take the apple and cut it into small chunks
4. When the cous cous is done, turn off  the heat and let sit for 2 minutes
5. Add in the cranberries, salt, pepper, and garlic powder, and stir
6. Optional: If the cous cous is sticking together, add a dash of olive oil
7. Optional: For more flavor, mix a little bit of crushed fresh garlic
8. When serving, top with some apple chunks!

This warm, comforting, yet fruity dish lends a nice change from the usual. The chicken broth adds a depth of poultry flavor that you would miss by cooking the cous cous in plain water... so all in all, this is kind of like a healthy cousin of thanksgiving turkey with cranberry sauce. Enjoy this clean eating!

xoxo n

side note

this past weekend, i reunited with lots of college friends at my alma mater's homecoming -- one of Austin's fraternity brothers came up to me and said they love my blog and made my breakfast avocado! it really touched me!! even though this blog is a labor of love, and i truly love writing about my cooking escapades -- your comments as readers really keep me going on those tough long days. i really appreciate your words, alex! :)

Sweet Potato & Roasted Apple Soup

Please forgive my kitchen table with things on it.... I'm 23 and normal.

 

A couple of weeks ago, I went to happy hour with some work friends here in DC. Being that every restaurant seems to adopt "seasonal is cool" fad once October rolls around, their soup of the day was Pumpkin. Of course, I HAD to try some with my Sam Adams Seasonal Ale. It was pretty good, as most of the dishes at that restaurant are, but two weeks later, I was still thinking about it. Finally, after much back and forth, I decided to muster up my own kitchen confidence and put my own spin on it. It's not just for chef's right?

Creamy and filling, this Sweet Potato soup literally takes 2 minutes to come together on the stove once you have all the ingredients, and as corny (catch the seasonal pun) as it sounds, it "tastes like fall." When I poured myself a bowl and tasted it, the world literally faded away. Best part -- I did the math, and this has like 200 calories for a bowl. Amen.

Servings: 2 (1 & 1/2 cups each)

What You'll Need:

• 1 can sweet potato puree (or canned pumpkin if you can't find sweet potato)
• 1 can fat free low sodium chicken broth (such as Swanson brand)
• 1/2 cup fat free half and half
• 2 medium-sized apples (you want sweet ones, so don't use green ones!)
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon (or pumpkin pie spice)
• Salt/Pepper to taste
• OPTIONAL: Plain Lowfat yogurt for topping

The Step-by-Step:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees, and line an oven pan with foil. Slice apples and place on pan. Roast apples for 25 minutes.
2. While roasting, do something else, such as cleaning your apartment (ahem.)
3. When apples are done (you can smell them wafting through the air while, say, cleaning your apartment) take them out of the oven and let cool while....
4. On the stove, combine chicken broth with sweet potato puree over medium high heat. Stir with a whisk until combined. Let heat for 5 minutes.
5. Place apple slices and half & half in a blender, and blend until combined (about 20 seconds.)
6. Add apple mixture to sweet potato mixture, and stir. Add the cinnamon, and stir some more!
7. To serve -- spoon into some bowls, and top with a spoonful of yogurt. Sprinkle some cinnamon or pie spice on top for decoration.

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Oh, did you think #AppleFest was a game?
Shame on you! I have tons of apples to use up, and like I said, I'm more than willing to get creative. I hope in the spur of my creativity, that I can inspire you too!

Based on how easy and delicious this soup was, I can tell I'm going to make lots more soup when it gets colder in the upcoming weeks. It keeps well in the fridge, and reheating is a no-brainer. Plus, I'm a sucker for things that make me feel like I'm wrapped in a blanket. Plus, its seasonal and healthy. What more could a girl want?

Remember -- I want to know what you're thinking! #THAppleFest

xoxo n

AppleFest! Spiced Applesauce

So -- after writing the last post..... I caught the case of apple-blog-mania.
I'd like to call it: AppleFest 2013, actually.

In the next month, I will be sharing wonderful recipes that have inspired me, everywhere from the cafeteria at work, to old cookbooks, to even my own imagination in the kitchen on a random Thursday. Look out for:

• Israeli CousCous with Cranberries & Apples
• Easy Apple Cinnamon Oats
• Personal Apple Pies
• Sweet Potato & Roasted Apple Soup

To start off, I decided to venture into making my own applesauce! First of all, its not only delcious, but it's so "school lunch" -- remember those sweet days? Plus, applesauce is so versatile -- in the past couple of days, I've eaten it plain, mixed it into some smoothies, or even topped it on some oatmeal! Not only that, but with my recipe, nothing artificial is added -- and if you're like me -- you'll be hooked on the purity of this recipe and taste, and never want to buy store applesauce again!

Servings: 4-8 (1 cup or half cup)

What You'll Need:

• 8 small apples (preferably pink or light red)
• A Slow Cooker! (can find them for $15 -- best thing you can buy for yourself)
• 1/2 cup water
• 2tbsp Cinnamon
• Optional: Pumpkin Pie Spice (sold this time of year, its cinnamon, ginger, cloves, etc. bottled together in one)

Step by Step:

1. Cut the apples into slices and make sure to cut the peels off.
2. Put the apple slices into the slow cooker and add water and just a pinch of cinnamon.
3. Stir, cover, and turn the slow cooker to "Low." Let cook 6-8 hours while you sleep, you busy world-changer!
4. When the time is up, turn the slow cooker off and use a wooden spoon to mash the apples until the sauce is chunky. Add the remaining cinnamon and a dash of pumpkin pie spice and stir.
5. Let sit for 30 minutes, stir, then put the dish into the fridge. Let cool before serving.

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Who's excited for AppleFest? Instagram me at @natalieneilson with the hastag #THAppleFest to show me how you are engaging in the apple bounty this fall! Can't wait to hear from you guys!

xoxo n

Writer's Note: For those wondering "Where's the Sugar??" -- Many of the recipes I found online for applesauce required you to add sugar (sometimes up to a cup!) I decided to go against adding sugar, since apples are naturally sweet -- and I decided if I tasted my applesauce and it wasn't sweet enough, I would direct you readers to another sugar-adding recipe. However, my natural applesauce was just sweet enough :)

Maple-Glazed Salmon with Baked Apples

We all know the phrase "An Apple a Day..," but as soon as you decide that you want to attempt eating seasonally, you realize in that this is a serious phrase in October! Fall brings more apples than you can imagine, and if you don't act fast, they get brusied and gross in your fruit basket, despite your good intentions. Therefore -- you realize (like I did this week) that you gotta get creative. When i told my boyfriend (who is a self-proclaimed salmon hater) that I was thinking of incorporating apples into a salmon dish -- he looked at me (with a clear "I'm trusting you..." smirk) then asked "so will the apples be dessert?".

Less than an hour later, he was wolfing down the entire meal and commenting on how the apples complimented the salmon "unexpectedly and perfectly." He was right -- With the honey beautifully pairing with the apple's natural flavors, the fruit just melts in your mouth. I served mine over brown rice -- Try it out!

 

Servings: 4

What You'll Need: 

• Four (5-ounce) salmon filets (Target just launched a new collection of healthy foods called 'Simply Balanced' -- I got a bag of wild-caught Alaskan salmon filets for $10! --winning!)
• 4 tablespoons light maple syrup
• 1 cup microwave-in-the-bag brown rice (pick your battles!)
• Salt/Pepper
• 2 apples (any kind that's not green-- who wants sour roasted apples?)
• 1 tablespoon honey (or brown sugar)
• 1 tablespoon water
• Cooking Spray or foil
• Baking pan
• Optional: Slice some spinach leaves for garnish
• Optional: Marinade (see below)

For the Salmon:

Quick way: Take the salmon filets and season with salt and pepper (if you bought them frozen, let them thaw first.) Place the filets on the pan and let bake for 15 min at 400 degrees. After removing from oven, spread maple syrup over filets.

Optional "long" way: Place salmon filets in a plastic bag. Add olive oil, a little soy sauce, garlic powder, salt pepper, brown sugar, and honey to the bag and shake to coat. Let sit in the fridge for two hours. Take salmon out of bag and bake as instructed above. (This method allows the salmon to marinate and have deeper flavors-- but don't fret -- the quick version is also tasty!)

For the Apples:
Turn each apple on its side. With a good knife, slice off the top (the stem) and the bottom (the stub.) Then, with the apple still on its side, slice the apple into rings. Cut out a small circle in the middle of each ring (taking out the seeds/core.) Place on a pan with cooking spray. Mix together the honey and water in small bowl, and using your fingers, spread on the apple rings. Bake for 25 minutes at 400 degrees. (You can do this on a separate pan, but for the sake of the dishes I would have to wash, I baked these for 5-10 minutes then took them out of the oven. I spread some more honey water on the rings, moved them to the side of the pan, then added more cooking spray and the salmon to the pan. I put the one pan back in the oven for the salmon's 15 minutes -- genius, right?)

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Crisp apples, moist apples, juicy apples -- you name it, fall brings them. You can also use these same baked apples, adding some cinnamon -- and compliment some oatmeal in the morning, or even serve them warm with some whipped cream on top for a healthy dessert. It's apple season, so expect a multitude of apple recipes on Table Haven this month. Let's get crackin! err, slicing?

xoxo n