An Apple A Day!

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Fall Apples..mmmmmmmm!

Apple cider, apple pie, apple sauce, apple fritters, apple pancakes....

need I say more?

My favorite treat is to stop and get a Hot Caramel Apple Cider from Starbucks now and again.

I'm not a coffee drinker...gasp...I'm just not!  But I love their cider and yes I have a recipe I make at home now and again too.  There's just something about treating yourself now and again that makes it that much more special though :)

I saw this Homemade Applesauce recipe the other day on the "Thrifty Decor Chick Blog" and 

it SCREAMED "MAKE ME"...no it really did...well in MY head it did.

Because I had just bought some fresh apples at the farmers market and wasn't sure what I was going to do with them. 

But like all recipes I have TWEAK them just a bit...I can't help myself...I'm TERRIBLE

at following directions.  I like to add a bit of myself to each dish I make I guess hee hee.

So you need to peel and chop 10-12 apples.

Now on her blog she had that nifty corer-peeler -swirl-cutter gadget...yeah I don't have that.

So I used my Pampered Chef peeler and my apple-core tool instead...it worked fine.

We all do what we have to, to get it done :)

Then you load all them apples in your crock pot

with your other ingredients.

Note: I have had this crockpot for 18 years..it was an engagement gift..it works great still.

I also have 3 other crockpots..I am a hoarder of kitchen stuff..no not really...well ok kinda.

I have an oval-fancy-dancy one for long tenderloins and ribs, a zebra one sent to me by my BFF Pat that is unused because I'm saving it for when this one breaks, and a smaller crockpot for dips.

See they all serve a purpose...they really do.

*****

Now here is where I changed up the recipe...I added brown sugar, maple syrup and more cinnamon to my recipe. Why? Cuz I'm a recipe-bad-arse like that...haha :)

No I like the flavor of brown sugar and maple syrup paired with apples so I knew it would work well...and it did!

RECIPE

10-12 apples (peeled, cored, chopped)

1/4 cup of brown sugar

1/4 cup of sugar

1/4 cup of maple syrup (the thickest you have)

1/2 TBS of cinnamon

dash of nutmeg (optional)

Cook on HIGH in your crockpot for 4 hours at least!

No peeking or lifting the lid...or else.

Your house will smell divine...like Christmas...mmmmm!

Serve it warm, serve it cold...its ALL good I tell ya!

Your tummy will thank you when you are done...I swear it will.

*****

This is what you get when its all done.  

I used my Pampered Chef chopper tool (my name for it...shhhh) to chunk it up a bit more.  I like mine pretty chunky so I didn't do it too much.

I use a lot of Pampered Chef tools because I sold it eons ago...I have 1 of everything..I think.

Handy dandy they are!

And because I can take a healthy dish and make it bad for you in a BLINK-of-an-EYE---

I kept our applesauce warm, served it over vanilla bean ice cream and drizzled it with caramel sauce.

Oh yeahhhhh baby...good stuff...we were all wanting to lick the bowls of this one.

So if you love apples and simplicity...try the recipe.

Either Thrifty Decor's version or my edited version.

Let me know what you think and if you make it ok?

(and if your tummy thanked me)

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Entering in these Linky Parties:

Common Ground: Be Inspired
Blissful & Domestic
Making Homebase
The Fun in Functional
Life on Lakeshore Drive - Bouquet of Talent
Give Me The Goods