Carrie Summers

Taking a trip to the apple orchard is one of my favorite fall activities. Since my oldest was a toddler, my family and the family of one of my very best friends have been going together. It's a tradition I look forward to every year. We have been to different apple orchards and have been at different times during the early to late fall, but always have a great time and make lasting memories. The kids love it and I do too! This year we went a little earlier than usual and I was excited to go during Honeycrisp picking time. We weren't quite fast enough though because they were gone by the time we got there and weren't even available in the store. Maybe next year! Don't feel too sorry for me though, there were still several delicious varieties ready to pick. If you are like me, I often times get carried away (or should I say let my girls get carried away) picking apples and end up with way more than I intended to get. Good thing there is Pinterst and its never ending supply of apple recipes to help me decide what to do with them! Even though I pinned several new apple recipes to try, there is alway one staple I make with our orchard bounty - homemade applesauce. In the past I have not really used a recipe. I just peel, core, and slice the apples then cover them with water, add some cinnamon and a little bit of sugar and cook it down on the stove. This year I decided to try a crockpot applesauce recipe that I had pinned. It was basically the same as my old applesauce "recipe" except I just put it in the crockpot and let it go. It was delicious and the perfect, easy recipe to make on a crisp, fall day. I used Mollie's Delicious apples this year for my applesauce. They are my new favorite apples! Everyone in the family loved it. It did make a lot of applesauce and I knew we weren't going to be able to eat it all before it went bad so I went back to Pinterest and found a couple of recipes that used applesauce. The first one I made was simple but delicious and it's kid friendly too. I made the old tried and true favorite meal of pork chops and applesauce. This really is something that anyone can make and cater it to your family's taste. I used a recipe from Skinnytaste but just about any recipe for pork chops with a basic seasoning blend would work. I also made applesauce muffins. So yummy! My girls loved them and they were easy to make. I will definitely be making them again for a fun weekday breakfast treat. These can be made year round with canned or frozen homemade applesauce or with store bought applesauce. I made a recipe that used a mini muffin tin because everything tastes better in mini muffin form (or at least that's what my girls tell me). You would think that my family would be sick of apple dishes, but luckily for me they weren't and I made one more dessert with our over supply of apples. It was an apple dump cake. Again, another very easy recipe that turned out great. This one is definitely not low in calorie but it's worth it! It has just 4 ingredients, apples, cinnamon (which is optional but I used), yellow cake mix, and butter. The pinned recipe doesn't call for peeling the apples but I did in mine and I'm glad I took the time to do that. It made the house smell so good and exactly like what fall should smell like! Apple picking season in Indiana is still in full swing! You still have time to head out to an apple orchard and continue or start a fun, family tradition this fall. I hope if you do, you try some of these recipes or find others on Pinterest that sound good to you. If you find a different one you love, please share it with me. Happy picking! Carrie's Tips If you don't already have an apple corer and slicer go get one today! You can get them just about anywhere. I have had my trusty Pampered Chef one for years! When you make your applesauce and use a recipe that calls for sugar, make sure you taste test your apples before adding the amount called for in the recipe. Some apples are sweet enough on their own and don't need any or all of the sugar. Check out the website for the apple orchard you plan on attending before you head there. Some are closed on Sundays and some charge an entrance fee for certain days and times. You can also see a list of which apples are available for picking before you go.Find these pins on my Well, that was Pinteresting board at: pinterest.com

Carrie Summers

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