Cranberry & Apple Crisp

Original Recipe HERE

 

While I would happily have every dessert I ever make be chocolate-based, I know not everyone shares the same obsession.  So if it's not going to be full of my VIP ingredient of choice, I like to go in the opposite direction and include fruit: if it's not going to be obviously bad for you, why not pretend it's masquerading as something good for you?

 

Per the recipe, I used granny smith apples and found the final product to be too tart for my liking.  Next time I'll substitute some sweeter ones.  Also, because the apples were in the back of our fridge and went through an unfortunate freeze/thaw cycle, I had to throw out a few and use pears in their place.  I don't know how much of a difference they made; everything got mixed in together so I never identified a definite bite of apple or pear either way.

Ingredients

* For topping:

1 cup flour

1 cup old-fashioned oats

2/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup cold butter

* For fruit layer:

8 to 9 apples

2 cups cranberries (fresh or frozen) [I used fresh]

1-1/4 cups sugar

7 Tablespoons flour

1-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 pinch nutmeg (optional)

7 Tablespoons cold butter, cut into pieces

 

Directions

(1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease 9x13" baking pan (I used glass).

(2) Mix dry topping ingredients together until well combined.  Add cold butter; mix with fingers or pastry cutter until it resembles coarse meal.  Put in refrigerator while preparing fruit layer.

(3) Peel, core, and cut apples into 1/4" slices.

(4) In large bowl, mix apples, cranberries, sugar, flour, and cinnamon.  Add butter; toss to combine.  Transfer mixture to baking dish.

(5) Crumble topping over fruit.  Bake for about 1 hour, or until apples are desired tenderness.  Cover with foil after 30 minutes to prevent browning.

(6) Cool slightly and serve with ice cream or whipped cream.

 

Kid Participation:

* Mix dry ingredients

* Make apple mixture

* Crumble topping

* Expect to have whipped cream squirted into your mouths during the entire process

Oatmeal Yogurt

Original Recipe HERE

To say I'm not a morning person is a grievous understatement.  I've tried for 30 years to change it.  No, that's a lie...I haven't tried that hard.  But now with two kids, I need to make some adjustments.  I'm concerned about what it'll be like when one or more of them are in school.  We'll have to get certain mandatory things accomplished by a certain time every day.  Pre-10:00am is not a good time to ask me to function, cup of strong coffee or not.  So anything that can streamline my mornings is a blessing.  I'd much rather spend five minutes throwing a batch of this together at 11:00pm when my house is full of peace and quiet instead of trying to fix breakfast for three people during the inevitable morning chaos.

This recipe includes several of my favorite things, and a bonus is that you can use apples year-round in it.  Out-of-season apples are so unsatisfying.  Here, their often meally texture and lack of potent flavor don't matter.  I heated a few spoonfuls of the final product in the microwave to compare, but I thought it was better cold.  Sweet!  One less step to worry about when stumbling around the kitchen in my morning fog.  This will be made again.  I can think of all kinds of variations and add-ins, and the thought of tripling or quadrupling the recipe so everyone eats the same thing for breakfast makes me giddy.

Update: I've since made this many times, including using a six-ounce Chobani plain yogurt and a diced pear. Just as good, though I figured out too late that my pear wasn't ripe enough. I've also used Stonyfield fat free French Vanilla yogurt, wheat germ, and flax seeds.  And I have learned to just eyeball the ingredients.  Both kids gobble up at least two bowls whenever I make it, so double or triple the recipe each time.

Ingredients

4 ounces (fluid) plain yogurt [I used Dannon fat-free]

1 tablespoon honey

1/4 cups uncooked oats [I used quick-cook]

1 small apple, peels and diced (1/4" to 1/2" cubes)

dash cinnamon

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a bowl or tupperware. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Notes: The original recipe says you can substitute vanilla for the honey and suggests using Greek yogurt.  Adding some slivered almonds or craisins in the morning has potential.

Kid Participation (if you're not throwing it together at 11pm):

* Measure yogurt and oats

* Shake cinnamon

* Stir