Crockpot Apple Pie

So I bought a bag of organic Fuji apples from Publix literally a month ago. Took one bite and wanted to throw it away, it was so bland. Instead, I just let it sit out. And sit. And they were getting kind of fugly. So I threw them in the fridge, vowing to create some sort of sauce or puree from it so it wouldn't go to waste. Today was that day. Laurel took a 2 hour nap which was enough for me to cook up a storm.

I cored and sliced the apples and set them aside. I used half of them in my previous vegan chili post but wasn't sure what to do with the other half. I let them sit out for hours until I realize how much I wanted apple pie. I thought if I could combine the bland apples with sugar, cinnamon, and flour, I would be able to mask the boring flavor, especially since it'll be cooked. I read somewhere that you could cook bread in a crockpot, so I figured there's got to be way to do a slow cooker pie. Needless to say, there was this recipe. I'm actually eating it a I type! It's not bad, the bready part is what I was really craving as the apples still have no flavor. Not bad!

8 C apples (peeled, cored and sliced)

1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

2 eggs (beaten)

3/4 C milk

1 Tbsp. vanilla

1 C sugar

5 Tbsp. butter  (softened)

1 1/2 C biscuit baking mix (divided in half)

1/3 C brown sugar  
1/2 tsp. cinnamon 

Fresh Vegan Apple Crockpot Chili

Today is Save it Saturday. All the fresh fruits and veggies that were on the verge of compost has now turned into: fresh buttered corn, vegan chili (apples, fresh corn, beans, cherry tomatoes, sweet potato and carrot cubes), crock pot apple pie, banana and honeydew smoothie. WIN WIN WIN

INGREDIENTS

• sliced apples
• fresh cut corn
• pinto beans
• cherry tomatoes
• sweet potato puree
• organic carrot puree
• diced onion
• garlic
• vegetable stock (I used leftover chicken stock though)

SPICES

• Turkish bay leaf
• dried oregano
• dried basil
• yellow curry powder
• sea salt
• cayenne pepper
• dash of Worcheshire sauce

Sautee onions in garlic and oil. Add all of the ingredients into crockpot and cook on low for about 6-8 hours. This will yield a delicious, thick vegan chili with a little kick. The apples give it a subtle sweet flavor, the cherry tomatoes the light sour, and the sauteed garlic a nice fresh flavor. Yummers!

Daily Food Plan

I did alright with my month's goals! Not too shabby - this entire month, Thomas and I decided we weren't going out to eat at all because we completely blew our budget last month... and the month before...and so forth. This has been the healthiest month I've ever had I think - we've eaten avocados practically every day, drank more water, had tons of salmon, and eaten at least 50% red/black rice. Even my sweet tooth is satisfied by NOT a cookie but homemade traditional tong-jook: red beans, black sticky rice, cane sugar, and coconut milk.

AAAANNNNNNNNNNNNDDDDDDDDDD ............. update 6/29/13 - I got preggars right around this month! Talk about eating fertile food.. oops!! Bahaha