Easy Apple Recipes

I love cooking with apples. There is nothing that makes the house smell better than the smell of cooking apples.

Every year I look forward to Autumn. I love the cool days, the beautiful colors, and I especially love that it is apple season.

There are so many wonderful things to make: apple butter, apple coffee cakes, apple bread, and of course there is always apple pie.

In researching for this lens, I have found that there are also a lot of other people that must love apples because there are a lot of apple lenses. I decided to tell you about two of my favorite recipes that I use again and again and then I will recommend some of my favorite apple lenses.

Happy Eating!

photos by Mary Beth Granger

easy step by step instructions

When apples are in season, I make a batch of applesauce at least once a week. It is great for a meal accompaniment or for a tasty snack. I use whatever type of apples are currently available at our farmers market and I have found that it is also good to mix a couple varieties together. I have used all varieties and have never had a bad batch of sauce.

Note: I do not use sugar in my applesauce. I feel the apples are plenty sweet by themselves and I do not need the extra sugar. If you would have extra tart apples, or you prefer a sweeter taste you could add sugar to taste as the sauce is cooking.

Here is how I make my applesauce. I generally do not measure the amounts of spices but to give you an idea I am going to give you a recipe for about 3 medium sized apples. You can alter the recipe and add as many apples as your pot will hold.

Step One Peel and core apples and cut into chunks. For a medium sized apple I would cut each quarter into 2-3 chunks. Put apples into a pot.

Step Two Pour water over apples till just the tops of the apples are sticking out.

Step Three Add about 1teaspoon of cinnamon and a dash of nutmeg for every 3 apples that you are cooking.

Step Four Cook apples on medium heat (uncovered) till apples are soft. This takes about 15 minutes.

Step Five When apples are soft, remove from heat and use potato masher to mash the apples to desired consistency. We prefer a chunky applesauce but you can also make a smoother sauce using this same method.

Step Six Cool apples and then put in a sealed container in the refrigerator.

Some people like to eat the applesauce while it is warm, but we prefer it after it has been refrigerated and the flavors mingle for at least a couple of hours. Enjoy!

The secret to making just the right applesauce is using the right tool. I use a potato masher to mash up my apples after cooking. Here is one that would be perfect for the job!

quick and easy individual apple crisp

This is a recipe that I adapted from the conventional apple crisp recipe to use in microwaves. It is so simple, I can easily make a couple while my supper is cooking. Then while we are eating, I pop them in the microwave and we have hot apple crisp for dessert!

Step One Peel, core and slice one apple into a single serving microwave safe dish. (I use creme brulee ramekins, but any small microwave save dish would work).

Step Two In another small bowl put 1/3 cup quick cooking oatmeal, 2 Tablespoons of Brown Sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon and a dash of nutmeg.

Note for someone who needs to limit their sugar I will substitute one packet of sweetener for the brown sugar

Step Three Using a table knife cut 1 Tablespoon of butter or margarine into the oatmeal mixture till butter is cut up into very small pieces.

Step Four Pour oatmeal mixture over sliced apples.

Step Five Bake in microwave on high setting. I do one serving for about 3 minutes and two servings for about 5 minutes. Test by sticking fork in apples to make sure they are soft.

This dessert is good served with a scoop of ice cream or cool whip. It is also wonderful all by itself! ENJOY!

Apple Crisp Recipe by mbgphoto

I have found that creme brulee ramekins make perfect individual dishes to cook and serve your microwave apple crisp.

These are the ones that I use. They are the perfect size to slice up 1 apple and add the topping.

I love apples in most everything. I especially like them in combination with pork. I think homemade applesauce is my favorite. How about you?

I love to try new apple recipes.