You cannot savor the sweetness of the fall without biting into an apple. Even if I’ve already talked about apples here , a quick reminder of how beneficial they are for you, some buying and cooking tips and a delicious recipe of a Dutch Apple Pie!
Health benefits
Eating regularly apples is extremely beneficial for health. Although there are only about 5 mg of vitamin C in a small apple, it has the antioxidant equivalent of 1500 mg of vitamin C!
Your body will love it because it:
- Decreases the rate of cholesterol due to the pectin that it contains
- Reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease
- Lowers blood pressure
- Is diuretic and laxative
- Contains quercetin, an antioxidant that can inhibit cancer cells
- Is a great snack to maintain a healthy weight
Tip: Eat an apple before going to bed in the evening, if you have constipation issues.
Purchase and conservation
In your list of organic food to buy, apples should be at the top of the list. Why so? Because as apples are particularly vulnerable to insects, they are shot with over 35 chemical treatments and the pesticides get mostly accumulated in the skin. And as we should be eating the skin, because that is where most of its phytocomposants and vitamins are, organic apples are your best bet.
According to some studies, tests with apples have shown that between 50 and 93 percent of pesticides residues remained on produce after washing with water.
Apples can be kept for several weeks in the refrigerator. Enjoy eating them raw, but remember to take them out of the fridge an hour earlier in order to taste and smell their aroma.
Put a few apples with green bananas or avocados; they will ripen more quickly.
Some ideas in recipes
- Great in a green salad with spinach, apples and walnuts, or watercress, apples, walnuts and goat cheese.
- Make a nice applesauce and add a squeeze of lemon at the end.
- Of course, they are delicious in crumbles and pies.
Speaking of pastry, here is a recipe of a Dutch apple pie inspired and modified from here. I cooked it twice in one week and I couldn’t stop eating it!
- Crust:
- 1½ C flour spelt
- 1½ C almond flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 6 Tbsp virgin coconut oil
- 7 Tbsp maple syrup
- 1 Tbsp water (if necessary)
- 8 medium apples, peeled and cut into cubes (3/4 p)
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp allspice (if you don't have one, it's okay)
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- pinch of salt
- 2 Tbsp orange (or lemon) juice
- 2 Tbsp maple syrup
- 2 Tbsp arrowroot powder (or flour)
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1 or Tbsp of water
- Preheat the oven to 350 F.
- Line the bottom of a springform pan of 9 in. (23 cm) with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flours, baking powder and salt.
- In another bowl, whisk together coconut oil and maple syrup. Pour the mixture into the flour mixture, stir and combine. Mixture should be a firm soft dough. Add water if necessary.
- Line the dough in the bottom of the mold. Lightly press the edges of the pie
- Mix the apples with all the filling ingredients in a large bowl.
- Put apple mixture into the crust and press lightly on the apples
- Cover with parchment paper and foil. Seal well, put on a baking sheet (this will help cook gently)
- Bake 50 minutes
- Remove the parchment and aluminium paper and cook for an additionnal 45 minutes. Apples should be soft and crust golden
- Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool completely before cutting.
- Add a handful of cranberries or dried fruits during the preparation of the filling.
- Add a handful of walnuts on top of filling, before baking.
- Enjoy!
No Comments