Baked Apples - Catching the Last Days of Autumn

Jan here, saying farewell to autumn. We have mixed feelings about the coming weather....

First Snow of the season - September 11, 2014

We've had snow already, so that's an old story.

And when the snow melted, we had a beautiful autumn - warm and sunny, with crisp evenings and beautiful mornings.

But the weather news looks formidable. The current forecast (Sunday afternoon) for the next few days calls for rain, then snow, wind and c-c-c-cold! In fact, the entire north-western tier of the US is expecting this polar blast.

So what do you do when you know it's all ending - that these mellow days are coming to an end?

Catch as much as you can!!!

We went to our favorite place yesterday afternoon, hoping to see some wildlife and soak up the last of the sun.

Whitetail Does - an unusual sighting for us. We normally
only see Mule Deer.

And now you know why they're called Whitetails!

We weren't disappointed!

Custer State Park is the jewel of the Black Hills. Beautiful drives, stellar hiking trails, and lots of wildlife.

We saw close to 300 bison on our two-hour visit to the park. They were busy eating as much of the nutritious grass as possible. I think they know a weather change is coming.

And this little guy is going to have a lot to learn when the storm moves in. His mama and the other cows in the herd will teach him to face the wind, not fear it.

They'll take good care of him.

Our route took us past Baby Mann's grave.

A stark reminder of the fragility of life for those early settlers, and a reminder that this beautiful park we were driving through was once a flourishing ranch.


And then, once we returned to the main road, we saw this sign. They're scattered all through the park. Some people don't believe them though. Every year a few tourists end up in the hospital after they tried to pet a wild Bison. They're faster than you, they're stronger than you, and they really aren't afraid of anything.

Believe the sign.

But then, the Bison don't read, do they?

We came upon this Bison cow right around sunset. Yes, she just stood there and let us drive around her.

But the sun did set, and the beautiful autumn day was over.

Is anyone ready to let go of autumn yet, though? Let's catch a last taste....

Baked Apples

This dish is so simple, there's no recipe :) However, if you're looking for another version, you can try The Fresh Pioneer's recipe from last year. Fall Eats! Warm and Filling Baked Apples, Superman Style!

First, preheat your oven to 350°.

Gather your apples.

Cut them in half and core them, then set them in a baking dish.

Put a pat of butter in each half - about a teaspoon.

Add a tablespoon of brown sugar to each, and then sprinkle with cinnamon, ground ginger, and ground nutmeg.

Bake at 350° for 45 to 60 minutes.

Enjoy! Bee Tee Dubs - these are particularly delicious with a scoop of vanilla ice cream :)

Fall Eats! Warm and Filling Baked Apples, Superman style!

Hello, everybody! the Fresh Pioneer is back and I have some seriously delicious food here. And it's good for you! OK, there is sugar. And butter. And more sugar. But there is some might healthy stuff in here...
  I love baked apples. But I also love to pretend that I'm eating something healthy so... let's add some things to the baked apples.
  For one: PECANS! (Let's not argue about pronunciation. It's a blog. You can read it the way you want!)

 

 

 

"According to the National Pecan Shellers Association, pecans are high in healthy unsaturated fat and just a handful a day can lower “bad” cholesterol. They also contain more than 19 vitamins and minerals including vitamins A, B, and E, folic acid, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, and zinc. Just one ounce of pecans provides 10 percent of the Daily Recommended intake of fiber. Pecans are also rich in age defying antioxidants. In fact, research from the USDA shows that pecans are the most antioxidant-rich tree nut and rank among the top 15 foods with the highest levels of antioxidants."
That's from a Shape article on Pecans here. I don't read Shape magazine. It makes me a bit depressed. But I do like to read about food!

Next: CRANBERRIES!
                                    
 We buy ours from the local Coquille Indian Tribe. Organic and sustainable farming is a win-win! they harvest 100,000 pounds a year.
Healthwise, anthocyanins present in the berries fight inflammation, and are also linked to lowering the risk of heart disease and cancer. This doesn't even address the antioxidant properties!
 

   So, let's get started! I'm going to use my NINJA COOKER! (I can't say that without a cheesey announcer voice. It's such a funny name.)

Hollow out the apples leaving about 1/4 inch at the bottom. Now, here's the bad part. Stick some butter in there. Seriously. It's yummier that way.

 I didn't chop the pecans but you can if you like a less chunky mix inside the apples. I also didn't mix the ingredients in a bowl because we have some people who did not 'prefer' their apples with raisins.
1cup old fashioned oatmeal
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup pecans
1 cup raisins
1 cup whole cranberries, raw

 

Settle the apples in the bottom of the pan (or the crockpot). Stuff each with a mix of desired ingredients. These apples won't hold much, so the leftovers go in the bottom of the crockpot with 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup apple juice.  I saw a recipe that called for 1.2 cup brandy and I REALLY wanted to try it... but giving alcohol to toddlers might be a bad idea. So, no brandy in this one.

 I dribbled a little maple flavoring into the middle of the mix. With the way the crockpot heated the bottom, everything smelled great!

 After 15 minutes, I opened it up. (Now, this is the NINJA COOKER. If you have a crockpot, it will take longer. Hours probably. MMMMM, the cranberries are all cooked, raisins are puffed up, pecans are soft, and the oatmeal is perfectly done.

 One apple, with leftovers on the side. The only thing I might change would be to add more oatmeal. My daughter drizzled hers with honey from the farmer's market and that was DELICIOUS!

I know this picture is fuzzy. It's because the spoon was moving so quickly TOWARD MY MOUTH.

After one of these babies, you'll be as strong as Superman. Or maybe live as long. Or maybe just have nice skin. I'm not totally sure. We can hope for all three!

As I was working, Edna quoted something I thought was just lovely. (If she doesn't get a chance to cook, she amuses herself by throwing out appropriate literary lines.) It describes me perfectly. If I had Dr. Who's tardis, I would just hop from Autumn to Autumn, with a little stop at Spring for a change.

 

Until next time, my lovelies!