Christina's Apple Crumb Pie

from my mom

1 pie crust
7 tart (Granny Smith) apples, peeled and sliced
1/2 C sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
2-3 TBSP flour
1 tsp - 1 TBSP lemon juice

Preheat oven to 400.
Mix all together. Add lemon juice as apples are sliced (sprinkling in occasionally) anywhere from 1 tsp to 1 TBSP. Microwave mixture 7-10 minutes or until apples just begin to change color. While apples cook, place pie crust into deep pie pan. Pour apples into pie crust.

Topping

3/4 C sugar
3/4 C flour
1/2 Butter

Mix flour and sugar together. Cut in butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over apples. Place pie in oven and then lower temperature to 350. Bake 30-45 minutes.

Christina's Apple, Chard and Mushroom Quiche

source unknown

• 1 Tbs. olive oil
• 1 Tbs. unsalted butter
• 1 large Vidalia or other onion, thinly sliced
• 1 cup (4 oz.) shredded ruby Swiss chard
• 1 cup (about 2 oz.) thinly sliced mushrooms
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• ½ cup chopped apple
• 2 Tbs. all-purpose flour
• ½ tsp. ground nutmeg
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup shredded Jarlsberg or Swiss cheese
• ½ cup milk
• 1 9-inch deep-dish pie crust, unbaked

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.

2. Heat oil and butter in large skillet over medium heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, and sauté onions until caramelized, about 15 minutes.

3. Add Swiss chard, mushrooms, salt and pepper. Increase heat to medium, and cook, stirring often, until mushrooms and chard are soft, about 7 minutes.

4. Combine apples, flour and nutmeg in mixing bowl, and toss to coat apples. Combine eggs, cheese and milk in separate bowl, and beat until ingredients are well blended. Fold in apple mixture.

5. Spoon chard mixture into pie crust. Pour egg-cheese-apple mixture over top.

6. Bake 35 to 45 minutes, or until cheese mixture is set and top is browned. Cool slightly before slicing, and serve. 

Christina's Green Detox Smoothie

1 cup baby spinach
1 cup kale
1 1/2 cups orange juice
2 frozen bananas
1 apple or pear, chopped
1 TBSP chia seeds

optional: flax seed meal, wheat germ, whatever other healthy stuff you want to add

Christina's Raw Apple Cake

adapted from Simply Recipes by Elise

Cake:

• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 2 cups of sugar
• 3 eggs
• 3 cups of white flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon cardamom 
• 3 cups chopped, peeled apples (varieties that are good for baking)
• 3/4 cup of sweetened coconut
• 1 cup of chopped nuts - walnuts or pecans

Glaze:

• 1/2 stick sweet butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons milk

Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Place coconut in a bowl and add 1/4 cup water. Set aside.

Beat together the sugar, applesauce and butter. Add the eggs and beat. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and cardamom. Add dry ingredients to oil sugar eggs mixture in thirds, beating to incorporate after each addition.

Press excess liquid out of coconut with paper towels. Mix the vanilla, apples, coconut, and chopped nuts into the cake batter.

Bake in a greased and floured bundt cake pan or angel food cake pan 1 hour to 75 minutes. Test around the centers with a long thin bamboo skewer or toothpick to make sure the cake is done.

When cool enough to handle, gently remove from pan. Let sit on a rack to cool completely.

Add glaze ingredients to a small saucepan and cook until melted. Place the cake on its serving dish. Prick all around the top of the cake with a fork so that when the glaze is applied it easily seeps into the cake. Pour glaze onto cake slowly, making sure it enters holes.

Christina's Roasted Sweet Potato Soup with Curried Apples

source unknown

2 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes (3 0r 4)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, sliced
course salt and ground pepper
1 red bell pepper, ribs and seeds removed, thinly sliced
2 jalapeno peppers, ribs and seeds removed, thinly sliced 
3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
4 cups vegetable broth, homemade or canned (2 cans)
2 teaspoons white-wine vinegar (or whatever kind you have)
1 teaspoon honey
1/4 teaspoon curry powder
1 small tart apple, diced
1/4 cup plain yogurt (or sour cream)
2 tablespoons chopped mint, for garnish

1. Preheat oven to 4oo degrees. Place sweet potatoes on a baking sheet and roast for 1 hour, turning once, or until potatoes are very soft. When cool enough to handle, scoop cooked potatoes out of the skins. Discard the skins. Or you can cheat and put them in the microwave wrapped in plastic and cook them 20 minutes on 70% power.
2. Meanwhile, in a large soup pot, heat oil over medium. Add onion, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and caramelized, about 20 min. Add bell pepper, jalapenos, and garlic; cook for 5 min. Add sweet potato and broth, stir. Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer, and cook for 20 minutes, until flavors have blended.
3. Working in batches, puree soup in a blender. Combine batches in a clean bowl. The soup should be thick. (If you prefer a thinner soup, add water or more broth). Taste and adjust seasoning.
4. In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring vinegar, honey, and curry powder to a boil. Add apple; stir for 1 minute and remove from heat. To serve, ladle the soup into bowls, ad spoonful of apples, spoonful of yogurt and a sprinkle of mint.

Christina's Chicken Salad

original recipe

1 lb chicken thighs, cooked and chopped
1/2 small apple, diced
1 stalk bekana, diced (I'm sure celery would work great.)
1 bunch scallions, diced
1/4 tsp curry powder
1 dash red wine vinegar
mayonnaise
kosher salt

Combine all ingredients. Add mayo and salt to taste. Chill before serving.

Christina's Fennel and Fruit Salad, Two Ways

from Make and Takes

1 large fennel bulb, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 Granny Smith apple, cored and diced (peeled or unpeeled)
1/2 cup green onions, white and tender green parts only, sliced
juice 1 large navel orange (reserve zest for another use)
1-2 tsp. poppy seeds
dried cherries or cranberries
goat cheese or blue cheese, crumbled
drizzle of olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste
a handful of raw walnuts or pecans

Toss the fennel, celery, apple, green onions, cranberries, cheese and walnuts together in a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together the orange juice, olive oil, poppy seeds (if using) and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Drizzle the dressing over the veggies and fruit. Put a few big spoonfuls of the basic salad on a bed of greens and mix in.

Chicken Salad Recipe:

To the basic salad add:

A big spoonful of sour cream and/or mayo or yogurt (1/4 cup or so)
Chopped fronds of the fennel, to taste, but about 2 Tbsp. is great
A bit of grated orange zest
Cooked chicken (1-2 cups, canned or leftover is fine)

Serve on little rolls or croissants, or on its own, or on a bed of greens.

Ben's Cornbread, Sausage and Apple Stuffing

My husband is a much better cook than I am, at least when it comes to be inspired and making up new recipes. This is the stuffing he made for Thanksgiving (his first time ever making stuffing, I might add) and it turned out great! For those of you still in doubt, the first time he ever made chili he won a chili cookoff. Yeah, he's that good.

6 C cornbread (1 paula deen recipe), cubed and dried
6 C white bread, cubed and dried
1 lb mild italian sausage
2 TBSP unsalted butter
2 small or 1 med-large Granny Smith apples
1 C chopped celery
1 small-medium onion
1/3 C dried cranberries
1 tsp ground sage
1 tsp parsley
1 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp black pepper
3 C chicken broth

Place all bread cubes in a large bowl. Sprinkle with all seasonings and stir.

Brown sausage. Remove meat from pan, but keep drippings. Add onion, celery and apples to pan with butter and saute until soft. Add cranberries for the last few minutes to rehydrate.

Add sausage, veggie mix and chicken broth to bread and stir to coat. Place in 9x13 pan or 2 9x9 pans. Bake 30 minutes for 9x13 pan or 20 minutes for 2 9x9 pans.

Christina's Apple Cinnamon Pancakes

from Smitten Kitchen

2 eggs, well beaten
1 1/2 cups of milk
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sugar
3 medium Granny Smith apples, grated
1 tsp cinnamon
a few dashes nutmeg
1 tsp lemon zest or 1 TBSP lemon juice

1. Mix the eggs with the milk in a large bowl.

2. In a smaller bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar together.

3. Combine the wet and the dry ingredients and stir in the apples, cinnamon, nutmeg and lemon juice or zest.

4. Heat nonstick skillet over low to medium heat. Drop large spoonful of batter into the pan and flatten it out a little and cook until golden brown underneath. Flip the pancakes and cook them for an additional two or three minutes.

5. Either dust with powdered sugar or serve with maple syrup.

Christinas' Lemon Ricotta Pancakes with Sauteed Apples

from Smitten Kitchen

For the sautéed apples
2 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
1 tablespoons unsalted butter
1.5 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
fresh lemon juice to taste

For the pancakes
2 large eggs, separated
2/3 cups ricotta
3/4 tablespoons sugar
3/4 tablespoons freshly grated lemon zest
¼ cup all-purpose flour
melted butter for brushing the griddle
maple syrup as an accompaniment

Prepare the sautéed apples:
In a large heavy skillet sauté the apples in the butter over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, or until they are softened, sprinkle them with the sugar and the cinnamon, and cook them over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 10 minutes, or until they are tender. Stir in the lemon juice and keep the mixture warm.

Make the pancakes:
In a bowl whisk together the egg yolks, the ricotta, the sugar, and the zest, add the flour, and stir the mixture until it is just combined. In a bowl with an electric mixer beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until they hold stiff peaks, whisk about one fourth of them into the ricotta mixture, and fold in the remaining whites gently but thoroughly. Heat a griddle over medium low. Working in batches, pour the batter onto the griddle by 1/4-cup measures and cook the pancakes for 1 to 2 minutes on each side, or until they are golden, brushing the griddle with some of the melted butter as necessary. Transfer the pancakes as they are cooked to a heatproof platter and keep them warm in a preheated 200°F. oven.

Serve the pancakes with the sautéed apples and the maple syrup.

Christina's Apple Cheese Quiche

from cooks.com

1 9 inch pie shell, baked
½ c brown sugar, packed
1 c heavy cream
8 oz Monterey Jack, grated
3 large cooking apples, peeled cored and sliced
2 tsp cinnamon
3 large eggs

Preheat oven to 400. Heap apples into shell. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon, reserving a little. Beat cream and eggs together and pour over apples. Spread cheese on top and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake 50-60 minutes. Let stand 10 min before serving.

Christina's Whole Wheat Apple Muffins

from Smitten Kitchen

1 cup (4 ounces) whole wheat flour
1 cup (4 1/4 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup (8 ounces) buttermilk or yogurt
2 large apples, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Grease and flour an 18 cup muffin tin and set aside.

Mix together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon, and set aside. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and add the granulated sugar and 1/4 cup of the brown sugar. Beat until fluffy. Add the egg and mix well; stop once to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Mix in the buttermilk gently. (If you over-mix, the buttermilk will cause the mixture to curdle.) Stir in the dry ingredients and fold in the apple chunks.

Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups, sprinkling the remaining 1/4 cup brown sugar on top. Bake for 10 minutes, turn the heat down to 400°F, and bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool the muffins for 5 minutes in the tin, then turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Christina's Apple Butter

4 qts (16 cups) finely chopped tart apples
2 3/4 C. sugar
2 3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp salt

Pour apples into crockpot. Combine remaining ingredients and drizzle over apples.

Cover. Cook in high heat 3 hours, stirring well with a large spoon every hour.

Reduce heat to low and cook 10-12 hours, until butter becomes thick and dark in color. Stir occasionally with strong wire shick for smooth butter.

Freeze or pour into sterilized jars and seal.

Christina's Glazed Chicken and Vegetables

Ingredients
1 2 1/2- to 3-pound whole broiler-fryer chicken
Cooking oil
2 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered
6 carrots, bias cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup prepared mustard
2 tablespoons margarine or butter
2 tablespoons finely chopped onion
2 teaspoons curry powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
2 medium apples, cored and cut into wedges

Directions
1. Skewer chicken's neck skin to back. Tie legs to tail. Twist wing tips under back. Place chicken, breast side up, on a rack in a shallow roasting pan; brush with cooking oil.
2. Insert an oven-going meat thermometer into center of an inside thigh muscle, making sure bulb does not touch bone. Roast, uncovered, in a 375 degree F oven for 1 hour.
3. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan cook potatoes and carrots in a large amount of boiling water for 20 to 25 minutes or until nearly tender; drain.
4. For glaze, in a small saucepan combine honey, mustard, margarine or butter, onion, curry powder, garlic salt, crushed red pepper, and ginger. Bring to boiling, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; set glaze aside.
5. Discard fat in roasting pan. Arrange potatoes, carrots, and apples around chicken in pan. Spoon glaze over chicken, vegetables, and apples. Roast for 15 to 20 minutes more or until meat thermometer registers 180 degree F. At this time, drumsticks move easily in their sockets and chicken is no longer pink. Remove chicken from oven; cover and let stand 10 minutes before carving. Makes 6 servings.