Some Good Ol' Fashioned Applesauce

Guess what? It's time for some recipe love!

It's been a while since I've put any up here, and since I promised some tasty apple treats, I figured I'd better get on it. And you know I've been using apples a lot lately, since Josh and I picked about 18 pounds....



Yeah, we definitely picked a lot of apples.


Anywho, when I was little, I have a very distinct memory of my dad fixing lunch for me when I was sick. I'm guessing my mom had probably already taken a few days off from work to stay home with me, so it was his turn (or something like that), because usually it was my mom who cared for my sickly self. But for whatever reason, it was my dad that day. And he fixed me a lunch of chicken noodle soup, toast, a hard-boiled egg, and applesauce. Maybe that was just what was in the pantry, or maybe that's what I requested... I don't know. But I do know that after that, whenever I was sick, I always asked for those things.

I know, I know, weird story to tell. But those foods have all definitely become some of my comfort foods, and the things I want to eat when I'm not feeling well, or when I just want to cuddle up and be all comfy-cozy.

So naturally, I have to share a recipe for applesauce with you. This is applesauce the good ol' fashioned way. It's a mixture of a couple recipes I've found... but, for the most part, applesauce recipes are largely the same. I've settled on this because it really lets the apple flavor shine through, instead of focusing on other ingredients like, oh, SUGAR. (And we know we all live in a way over-sugared society.) This one does use a little bit of sugar (1/4 cup), but if you're diabetic or just don't want any sugar, it's quite easy to take out - just make sure you're using sweet apples, not tart ones.

Sadly, I don't have any pictures of the process or product for you - we ate it up too quickly. However, this recipe is very easy and simple, and you won't believe how GOOD it tastes! I doubt you'll ever be able to go back to store-bought applesauce...


Applesauce, the Good Ol' Fashioned Way
Makes: about 3 1/2 cups (6-8 servings)
Prep: 15 minutes
Total: 40 minutes

Note: If you have a food mill, you don't need to peel the apples beforehand. However, if you don't have one (like me) OR if you prefer a more coarse applesauce (also, like me), you can simply peel the apples before coring them. Then, after they're done cooking, you can simply use a potato masher or a wooden spoon to break them up.


Ingredients:

• 4 pounds apples (about 8-12), cored and cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks (There is so much debate about what kind of apples to use for applesauce, and if you need to have more than one variety. I've been using Jonagold or Jonathans, which both have a balanced sweet/tart flavor and thus eliminates the need for a lot of excess sugar (some recipes call for up to 1 cup). Pink Lady apples are also supposed to be a good choice, and I've heard Macouns work well, too. Just remember that if you go with too tart of an apple, you'll have to add more sugar, and if you go with too sweet of an apple, it might be more like candy than applesauce.)
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 cup sugar
• Pinch of salt (or a little less than 1/8 teaspoon, if you don't like measuring by "pinches")
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• Pinch nutmeg (again, a little less than 1/8 teaspoon, if you don't like measuring by "pinches")

Directions:

1. If you are NOT using a food mill (see note above), peel your apples. This is pretty simple, and if you haven't done it before, here's a quick video:

Once you're done peeling your apples, or if you are going to use a food mill, core the apples and cut them into 1 1/2-inch chunks.

2. Mix the apples, water, sugar, and salt in a large pot/Dutch oven. Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the apples are soft and begin to break down.

3. If you are using a food mill, process the apples. If you're going for the more chunky variation, use a potato masher to break it up to a consistency of your liking. (If you don't have a food mill and want a more smooth texture, you can puree it in a blender.)

4. Stir in the cinnamon and nutmeg, and add sugar or water as needed to adjust the consistency. My personal favorite: serve warm! And enjoy! Or, cool to room temperature (about 1 hour), and enjoy! If you don't eat up all the delicious goodness right away, you can store it in an airtight container for up to a week in the fridge.


And there you have it! Incredible, amazing, and oh-so-good homemade applesauce, done the ol' fashioned way! And trust me, it's just the right snack on a breezy, somewhat chilly, beautiful Fall day.

Fall Adventure! Part II

What better way to lead into this post than with that picture, right? It pretty much says it all... when the Fall Adventure! continued, it was time to go pick some pumpkins! And not just any pumpkins, as you can see above, we went to the "Pick yo own" pumpkin patch! However, we had some traveling to do before we got there...

After we left the apple orchard, we took a little drive through the PA countryside, and came upon the Skippack Days street fair in Skippack Village, PA. (I love that it's a "Village"!) There were tons of vendors everywhere, selling all sorts of crafts, jewelry, antiques, and, of course, lots and lots of food. We grabbed some lunch (though we passed on the deep fried Oreos), and wandered around for a bit. Since our day's budget was already allocated to the apples and pumpkins, we passed on purchasing other goodies, but it was still great to walk around and see what kinds of things creativity inspires in people.

After a jaunt through Skippack, we hit the road again on our way to Winding Brook Farm. Although I wanted a tourist-free setting for apple picking, I totally gave in to the touristy side of things with the pumpkin patch. Part of the reason was that originally, Josh and I were thinking of going through a corn maze... however, after a day of scenic driving, apple picking, street fairing, and pumpkin hunting, we decided corn mazing would just need to wait for another time because our tummies were getting hungry and our feet a little tired.

But! Did we ever have fun hunting for our pumpkin in the pumpkin patch (the "Pick yo own" pumpkin patch, mind you). There were plenty of very gloriously orange pumpkins to choose from...

However, some of them just weren't tall enough to ride the rides.

We found a few other visitors along the way, too:

But then! Oh, then!

I found a tiny little pumpkin to love, and decided it must come home with us.

While I was swooning over my adorable little pumpkin, Josh was busy on the hunt (and graciously carrying the camera case for me). He stopped to inspect a few... and I looking at how tall Josh is (there he goes with his 6'4" business again), I realized how much bigger a pumpkin patch must seem to a small child, with so much amazing, glorious orangeness surrounding you (reminder: my favorite color is orange).

We looked and looked and looked... we had to find one that was just the right shade of orange (very bright), and just the right size (not too big, since it needs to stay inside our house), and just the right shape (round and sturdy, with a big enough side to carve into). And trust me, when it comes to hunting for pumpkins, you just can't settle for anything less than perfect.

Finally, Josh found it! Figures, huh? I think I was too busy being distracted by my cute pumpkin and running around being impressed by all the really enormous pumpkins. Sometimes he's much better than me at focusing on the goal at hand. But I agreed it was perfect, and we were able to go home happy. (Don't worry, the dirt came right off.)


As an end to our Fall Adventure! day, we went to Rock Bottom and celebrated with a belated birthday dinner for Josh. I took him there 3 years ago for his birthday, and he's asked to go every year since. It's just a good place for steaks and micro brews, especially after a Fall day filled with cavorting. Now, we just have to carve our pumpkin and roast us some pumpkin seeds... mmm, pepitas, here we come!

Fall Adventure! Part I

A couple weekends ago, I hatched a plan for a Fall Adventure! with Josh. And yes, just to clarify, it does need to be read with the exclamation point. It wasn't a Fall adventure, or even a Fall Adventure. It was a Fall Adventure! And it was pretty fantastic.

I don't know about you, but when I think about Fall and taking in some of the best things it has to offer, I think about things like apple picking, and hunting in the pumpkin patch, and being outside at fairs. So those are exactly the things we did, with some scenic driving and a great steak dinner at Rock Bottom thrown in, too.

This first installment features largely the apple picking portion of the day. We went up to Frecon Farms in Boyertown, about an hour outside Philly. It was a lovely drive up, and who can beat apples for $0.80/lb? Plus, it was the kind of orchard I wanted... a real orchard and not a tourist trap. So many of the farms around Philly are totally set up to just be moneymakers. I wanted the real deal, and found it. It was great.

To start off, the day we went was bright and clear, but it had been raining for a few days before so it was VERY buggy. However, bugs go for the highest part on your body (usually your head), so Josh decided to add the basket to his 6'4" frame and try to keep the bugs out of his face...

There really were a lot of bugs... check out the one on the sign... fortunately, there were lots more apples than bugs, so the fun wasn't spoiled.

I promise it's not a poison apple - it's the first one I picked! It just looked so delicious that I wanted to share it!

Josh found some good ones, too...

They looked so tempting that I just couldn't help biting into one...

Once we started putting apples in the basket, Josh had to figure out a new bugs-away technique. Good thing orchards have lots of sticks around...

And yeah, I kinda like him. He's my bestest best friend. Ever.

Some of the apples were a little high for me, since I'm only 5'6" and not 6'4", and I had to work a bit to get them (because you know the best are always the highest up)...

But success is so sweet.

Check out the apple jackpot Josh found... though I must admit that's pretty much how all the trees looked...

As you can see, I'm not nearly as sophisticated as Josh. I decided I need to attack the apples. Think bobbing for apples without the bucket. Or the water.

Josh engaged in a little silliness, though... here he's working at "being one with the tree". You can't really see it, but he's actually holding sticks in each hand, adding branches to the tree. Too bad he wasn't wearing brown pants, since he totally had the green shirt thing going on.

Me? I was just happy to be picking apples. Hooray!

And a very buggy picture... as this was being taken, a bug kamikazied into my eye. I'm not kidding in the least. It took about 3 minutes to get it out, and it was BIG. Definitely not a pleasant experience. I think you can even see my right eye twitching in this picture when you look at it close up... but hey, it's still a fun shot anyway.

After paying for our almost 20 pounds of apples (check out the picture here) and a couple cups of apple cider, we bid farewell and hit the road to continue our Fall Adventure! Which, of course, included the street fair and pumpkin picking... but, you'll just have to wait until next time to hear about that. And don't worry, there will be some yummy apple recipes coming along in a bit, too. After all, Fall just isn't the same without the sweet scent of apples and cinnamon and nutmeg and cloves being mulled and baked together. Until then, I hope you get a chance to go enjoy the sights and smells of autumn in your own backyard.

Absence and Apples

I apologize for my blog absence... I actually have quite a few things in mind to post (including pictures, another board game review, and some tasty recipes), but simply put, I've just been really overwhelmed lately and haven't found the time or motivation to do any of those things.

The biggest contributing factor to being overwhelmed is work. Figures, huh? Lately, the pressure of being one person doing two people's jobs has really hit me. (My boss/only other coworker in development has been out of the office fighting breast cancer for 6 months now and I've been doing both of our jobs... or at least trying to.) During the summer the stress of having too many things to do was there, but it was okay... even though I work year round, since I work at a school things definitely taper off a bit in the summer. But it's been nothing compared to what the Fall, especially this last month, has been like.

Despite putting in longer workdays (and usually forgetting to eat lunch until around 3pm - today is good - today it's only 2:30pm and I am intentionally taking a lunch break), then bringing work home when I leave in the evenings and bringing more work home on the weekends, I'm falling more and more behind. I'm constantly thinking about work things, and planning for work things, but people still keep asking for more and more things each day and no matter how many things I get done in a day, my to-do list doubles by the end of the day. Perhaps I wouldn't mind as much if I was being paid hourly... then at least I'd feel like I was getting a little something for the extra work... but I'm not. (Here's where voluntarily taking a huge pay cut to come to this job last year seriously gets me back. And I know I took things home ALL the time as a teacher... but that was part of the reason I took a break from teaching. Plus, teachers get the summer off.) All that to say, lately, it's all just really been taking its toll.

When I go home, if I'm not doing work, I don't really want to anything except veg on the couch and watch TV or a movie or sleep (which is definitely not how I usually am). Sometimes it's a struggle to just cook dinner, and I've really been on a cooking kick this year - with that being a way to relieve stress. Even reading has fallen largely to the wayside. So, needless to say, blogging hasn't been on the top list of priorities, since even something as simple as feeding myself been a challenge.

However, I do want to keep writing here, and I want to try to get back into a regular schedule. One of the main reasons for starting this blog was to remind myself of all of the amazing blessings in my life. Last February when I really started trying to write regularly, I was at a really low point - similar to now - and needed to give myself a kick in the pants. I have so many things to be grateful for, and I wasn't being very thankful - or joyful - about many of them. It was a small way of forcing myself to get a grip and be happy because life really isn't that awful. And that's a fact. God's given me an amazing husband who loves me even when I'm grumpy, two ridiculously cute kittens who know when I need to cuddle, a house with enough room to open up to friends for an evening of fellowship or a weekend Philly visit, and enough means to pay all of our bills without concern. Those aren't minor things, and I don't want to forget about them. Plus, allowing myself this creative outlet, however small, will help bring things back into balance for me, I'm sure. I just need to get myself to do it, is all.

So, all that to say, posting may be spotty for a while, but I am going to try and get things up as I can. In the meantime, feast your eyes on some of the apples Josh and I picked up on our Fall adventure... one of which I am now going to go eat as part of my lunch. And yes, I promise you they taste just as good as they look. Actually, better. And, hmm, see what this blog does? It reminds me that, yes, there are good things in my life today, even though I'm really tired and slightly despairing. Even if it's as simple as a delicious apple. God is good.

Some September Happenings...

So. It's already October. Can you believe it? There are less than 3 months left in 2009! September was a bit of a whirlwind over here. It brought a lot of changes for us, since our jobs are so tied to the school year (that happens when you work at a school and a church). Here are a few quick happenings...

September started out with quite a bit of grey and rain... including one storm where we lost power for a number of hours due to a lightning strike at the end of our block. Gotta love those live wires. All the neighbors were out watching, but from the safety and dryness of the porch (me included - you can see how heavily it was raining by looking at the street). Thankfully, no one was hurt, there wasn't any damage, and the fire department and PECO came out pretty quickly to fix things.
While the rain might've dampened our spirits a bit (ooh! seven points for the bad pun!), our garden LOVED it! We've had a really great first year with our backyard garden (the 10 or so square feet of it that isn't concrete), and we've enjoyed getting additional veggies from our community garden CSA as well. I sadly didn't take a picture, but for the past month and a half, we've had a collection of about 20-30 tomatoes in our fridge. I kid you not. I've been specifically researching recipes tat use lots of tomatoes (besides spaghetti sauce, though we've made a few deliciously fresh batches), but it seemed no matter how quickly I used them, there were more! Good problem to have, huh? We're now finally down to about 5 tomatoes, but that hasn't stopped us from enjoying lots of Caprese salads. Below are a couple shots of some of the basil and peppers from our backyard... pretty delicious, huh?

One new culinary discovery for me this month - toasted garlic! I am a bit of a garlic addict, but I had never actually toasted it before. However, it's so delicious and so easy (and so much quicker than roasting), and I'm now a big fan. You just pop a few unpeeled cloves into a skillet over medium heat, and wait about 5 minutes until they start to develop small brown spots on the outside. Then, peel them and it's toasty soft garlicky goodness after that.

On the fun side of things, Josh and I have been rediscovering Rock Band. It'd been a while since we had played (mostly due to my gimp wrist), but we've been getting back into the swing of things lately. Josh usually plays drums, but here he's reacquainting with his old friend, the guitar...

September 22 was also a pretty important day... Josh's birthday! I love birthdays. Especially when they're for people I really love. And Josh would be one of those people. So it was pretty fun. We had a game night/mini celebration with some friends, which included an infamous Rainbow Cake (!) with chocolate frosting, crumbled candy bar topping (you bet), and lots and lots of candles on it....

Did I mention it was a NEON Rainbow Cake?!

Birthday celebrations in the Chen household wouldn't be complete without playing at least one board game... so we gave Fury of Dracula (Josh's birthday present, as it was) a go. It's a pretty sweet game. Josh played Dracula and the rest of us were hunters trying to catch him. Needless to say, he creamed us. (Though we did beat him the next week when Lydia, Joao, and Danielle came to visit.)

As September came to a close, the weather finally began to realize it was time to change, and the leaves started turning. We went from the mid-80s and high humidity one week to the low 60s the next. I love the summer, but I can't deny that I am looking forward to the excitement and change this Fall wind is bringing. It's a new season in Philadelphia, and I'm ready to jump in and see what's in store (and go crunch a few leaves, too).