Jenn’s Cook Book

This recipe is a combination of inspiration. Back when I worked at the unversity’s main campus, the buffet would serve “Sweetza” every Thursday, which is pizza with some kind of a sweet cream cheese sauce, cinnamon apples, and a sprinkle of cheddar cheese. It was absolutely delicious (I know for a fact that several other people would visit the buffet that day solely for this “apple pizza”). Recently, I read an article on Slashfood about the rise of dessert pizzas, pizzas made with chocolate, peanut butter, and other sweet goodies. It reminded me of the Sweetza, which really was a genius hybrid of regular pizza and these new dessert pizzas.

Enter Midnight Snacks. In the first section of the book 10:15 PM Past Your Bedtime Repast, the first recipe is for “Impromptu Pizza.” Basically, the recipe provides ideas for making a personal size pizza out of everyday food items such as flour tortillas, sliced tomatoes, and shredded cheese. After reading through some of the variations, I decided to try my hand at my own Apple-izza in the spirit of the Sweetza.

I started with a flat whole wheat tortilla and added a couple ounces of cream cheese mixed with a pinch of cinnamon and a splash of milk. Then I thinly sliced an apple and created a layer over the cream cheese, slightly overlapping the slices. Next, I seasoned with a small pinch of salt and cinnamon sugar. I then topped it all with a light sprinkle of cheese and baked until bubbly. Once out of the oven, I sprinkled with a bit more cinnamon sugar and cut into pieces. 

I served this for brunch, but it could also be a great dessert or appetizer to a meal. Be sure to cut the apple thinly so the slices cook and soften quickly in the oven. Cheddar cheese and apples are a classic combination, but mozzarella also works. I would recommend a firm, crisp apple like Braeburn or Fuji, or you could use a Granny Smith and substitute caramel for the shredded cheese and add some chopped nuts to make a delicious caramel apple pizza.

Jenn’s Apple-izza 
1 flour tortilla
3 oz cream cheese
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1-2 tsp milk
1 apple, thinly sliced
1/4 cup shredded cheese
cinnamon sugar 

Preheat oven to 400F and cover a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a small bowl, combine cream cheese, cinnamon, and milk. Stir until smooth and spread over tortilla.

Arrange apple slices in a single layer, slightly overlapping the pieces. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and top with shredded cheese.

Bake 10-12 minutes, until cheese is bubbly and the edges of the tortilla are golden brown. Remove and sprinkle with additional cinnamon sugar if desired.

Allow to cool 2-3 minutes and cut into pieces.

From chapter 2:30 AM: Late Night Rehab of Midnight Snacks, “try this fortifying concoction to hydrate your system, flush out some lingering impurities, and get your body rebounding with a vitamin booster shot.” The authors certainly don’t lack imagination. 

While the recipe is designed to stave off a hang-over, it’s a great early morning booster as well. Bonus: a full serving of fruit and veggies first thing in the morning, and then some. Normally, I adjust recipes to my liking, but this one was practically perfect. The only snag is the recipe is suppose to serve one, but I had plenty for two.

1 small papaya, peeled, seeded, and cut into chunks
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup apple juice
1/2 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into chunks
ice cubes (about 5-6)

Author’s instructions:

“Cast all the ingredients, along with any of the evening’s regrets, into the blender and puree.”

I do not advocate the peeling and seeding of fruits and vegetables, but in the case of papaya it is necessary. For the cucumber, it’s more about the texture of the smoothie. The only thing I added to this was a sprig of mint, just for show. If you really want to balance your breakfast, try yogurt or milk in place of the fruit juices.

Ripe papaya are more yellow than green and should yield slightly when you squeeze it.

These potatoes are similar to my Mexican Potatoes, but instead of just spicy I’ve added a sweet element. Peeling and chopping raw sweet potatoes can be hard work, so I cheated and bought the peeled, pre-cut variety that you can steam in the microwave, and it’s also much quicker than baking the potatoes in the oven. You will need two packages if you decide to go this route and you will want to reduce the oil to 2 tbsp since you are steaming and not baking.

3 large sweet potatoes
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne (red) pepper

Preheat oven to 400F

Peel and chop sweet potatoes into 1-inch chunks. In a large zip-locked bag, combine potatoes with the rest of the ingredients. Toss potatoes in the bag to coat. Spread out in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for 45-50 minutes, until potatoes are tender, rearranging occasionally to prevent the sugars in the potatoes to burn.

If using the pre-cut variety, steam bags in the microwave per package directions. Combine steamed potatoes in a zip-locked bag with the other ingredients and toss to coat.

For serving, drizzle lightly with honey if desired. This dish would be great with baked apple or pear wedges. If you would like a more savory application, bake the sweet potatoes with 1 cup chopped onion and 1 tbsp minced garlic.

There are tons of recipes out there for Baked Apples, so I’m certainly not reinventing the wheel here, but I did try my own take on a Fall classic. The original recipe came from Real Simple magazine, using nuts, brown sugar, and butter. I jazzed it up with some raisins, cinnamon, and a topping of caramel sauce. This would also be great with walnuts and dried cherries or sliced almonds and dried apricots, but I decided on chopped pecans and raisins. You could also substitute cardamon or ginger for cinnamon. Use firm apples that are good for baking such as Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Northern Spy, or Braeburn.

8 large apples, such a Braeburn
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1/3 cup raisins or other dried fruit
1/2 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt  
4 tbsp butter
caramel sauce or topping

Preheat oven to 400F

Rinse apples in cool water and pat dry. Using a melon baller, scoop out core of apples leaving about 3/4 inch at the bottom.

In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, nuts, raisins, cinnamon, and salt. Spoon mixture into each apple. Top each apple with 1/2 tbsp butter. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until apples are tender. Sprinkle water on the apples if too dry.

To serve, cut apples in half and drizzle with caramel sauce.

Shown below, drizzled with caramel sauce:

When I made the Apples Roasted with Root Vegetables, there was enough to feed a small army! I still had half of it left in the refrigerator, and decided to turn it into soup! You could either follow the original recipe and reserve half, or follow the recipe below if you just want to make the soup.

Here is the recipe, halved:

1 1/2 cups tart apples, cored and cut into wedges
1 cup carrots, peeled, cut into 3/4 inch thick rounds
1/2 medium onion, cut into wedges
1/2 lb small red skin potatoes, cut into quarters
1 large sweet potatoes, cut into 3/4 inch cubes
1 cups parsnips, peeled, cut into 3/4 inch chunks 
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp dried thyme or 1/2 tsp fresh chopped thyme
1/4 tsp salt

For soup, add:
2 tsp minced garlic
4-5 cups water or chicken stock
1/4 tsp nutmeg
pinch of red pepper

Preheat oven to 425F

Combine apples, carrots, onion, red skin potatoes, sweet potatoes, and parsnips in a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil, thyme,  and salt. Toss to coat and spread vegetables evenly on a large baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake 20-25 minutes, or until vegetables are tender and beginning to caramelize. 

Saute garlic over medium heat in a large saucepan for 1-2 minutes, until fragrant. Add 4 cups chicken stock or water, plus nutmeg and red pepper. Bring to a boil.

Add reserved vegetables. Simmer until the vegetables are warm (if using leftovers). Blend in batches, filling the blender halfway each time. Combine batches in a clean pot and add additional water or stock if too thick. Top with fresh ground black pepper.   

Shown below, garnished with a cinnamon stick:

Another tasty recipe from Cake Mix Magic, this one using fresh apples and homemade caramel frosting (yes, folks, you read right: HOMEMADE caramel frosting…don’t worry, it’s really easy). Pecans are optional in this recipe, I didn’t use them, but don’t let that stop you. Make sure that you are using unsalted butter, it lets you control the salt content of the recipe. In this case, the salt is built into the cake mix.

1 box (18.5 oz) Spice cake mix
1/4 dark brown sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup peeled, chopped tart apple, such as Golden Delicious (about 1 large apple)
1 cup chopped pecans, optional

Preheat oven to 350F and position rack in center of the oven. Set aside a 13×9 inch baking pan, coated in cooking spray if needed.

In a large mixing bowl, combine cake mix, brown sugar, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla extract. Using an electric mixer, beat on low speed for 1-2 minutes, until all dry ingredients are moist. Fold in apple pieces (peel and chop apple after beating batter to prevent browning).

Spoon dough into baking pan and spread into an even layer (dough will puff up as it bakes). If desired, sprinkle with chopped pecans, gently pressing them into the dough.

Bake 20-25 minutes, or until bars are golden brown but still soft. Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool.

Caramel Frosting:

1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted

Over medium heat, melt brown sugar with butter. Bring to a boil and add milk. Bring back to a boil and remove from heat.

Add vanilla and powdered sugar. Using a spoon, beat until smooth. Use while still warm (frosting will thicken as it cools).

Based on a tasty Fall recipe from www.MichiganApples.com, this dish combines tart apples with onions, potatoes, carrots and parsnips with light seasoning. The original recipe called for all of the apples and vegetables to be peeled, but I feel that peeling vegetables is a bit of a waste. I did peel the carrots and parsnips, but I wasn’t meticulous about it - a little bit of peel isn’t going to hurt anything. The recipe makes about 8 servings, so it can easily be halved if that is too much food.

3 cups tart apples, cored and cut into wedges
2 cups carrots, peeled, cut into 3/4 inch thick rounds
1 medium onion, cut into wedges
1 lb small red skin potatoes, cut into quarters
2 large sweet potatoes, cut into 3/4 inch cubes
2 cups parsnips, peeled, cut into 3/4 inch chunks 
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp dried thyme or 1 tsp fresh chopped thyme
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper 

Preheat oven to 425F

Combine apples, carrots, onion, red skin potatoes, sweet potatoes, and parsnips in a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil, thyme, salt and pepper. Toss to coat and spread vegetables evenly on a large baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake 20-25 minutes, or until vegetables are tender and beginning to caramelize. Remove from oven and serve.   

Root vegetables on a baking sheet:

Bake and serve:

Another adventure in Autumn’s produce, this soup combines rich butternut squash and tart Golden Delicious apples with a touch of curry and cinnamon. The produce used below was grown locally. There were several recipes online for this type of soup, but none really matched what I was looking for, so this is more of an original creation with a little help. Great for a rainy day! This is also going to be Turmeric-mania Recipe #8.

1 butternut squash, peeled and seeded, cut into 1-inch chunks
3-4 small or medium tart apples, peeled and cored, cut into 1-inch chunks
2 tbsp butter or oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
4 cups vegetable stock (chicken broth can be used instead)

In a large stockpot over medium heat, melt butter or heat oil and add onion and garlic. Saute 3-5 minutes until tender and fragrant. Add salt, curry powder, and cinnamon. Saute 2-3 additional minutes.

Add vegetable (or chicken) stock, butternut squash, and apples. Bring to a boil and simmer gently for 25-30 minutes, until squash and apples are tender.

Working in batches, puree soup in a blender or food processor until smooth. Reheat if necessary. Serve with roasted pumpkin seeds and a pinch of nutmeg (if desired).

Want a quick and tasty dessert perfect for those in-between days of summer and autumn? Try these easy, build-your-own sundaes and customize them to your liking. My toppings are only suggestions.

vanilla ice cream
apple pie filling
caramel flavored sauce or syrup
chopped nut topping

Warm apple pie filling over low heat for 5-10 minutes. Serve over vanilla ice cream and top with syrup (I like Hersey’s Dulce de Leche). Sprinkle with chopped nuts and enjoy!

This recipe originally appears as Onion-Apple Glazed Pork Tenderloin from the Lipton cook book, and here is my updated version. I added fresh onion and sage, instead of the soup mixture, and also added lots and lots of mushrooms. As apples come in season, I will probably add some fresh apples instead of using juice.

1 (1 1/2 to 2 lb) pork tenderloin
2 tbsp olive oil
ground black pepper
2 pkg (8 oz each) whole mushrooms, rinsed
1-2 sprigs fresh sage
1/2 yellow or Vidalia onion, roughly chopped
1 cup apple juice

Preheat oven to 425F

In a small roasting pan, arrange pork. Season with pepper and rub with 1 tbsp oil. Arrange mushrooms around pork and drizzle with remaining 1 tbsp olive oil and toss. Sprinkle with sage leaves and chopped onions. Roast uncovered for 15 minutes.

Add apple juice to pan, pouring over pork and mushrooms. Cook an additional 10-15 minutes, until pork is done. Serve with drizzle of juice from pan.