We were down to the last of our apple cider and I wanted to try something other than a dessert or bread or donut to use it up. Something for dinner. I found this recipe by Sunny Anderson on Food Network. It had good reviews (unlike the mess of recipes that is Sandra Lee) and the idea of combining apples and onions intrigued me. We all loved the finished dish...so I guess I'll be buying more apple cider so that I can make it again. :) Big hit!
You will need:
2T oil 2T butter (Smart Balance) 4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I cut mine into thirds) salt and pepper 1 small onion, chopped however you prefer 1 Granny Smith apple, sliced 2 tsp garlic 2 bay leaves 2 tsp thyme (optional--I didn't use it) 2T flour 1 1/2 cups apple cider (I used just a cup because some monkey drank the rest)
Put the 2T of oil in a large skillet and add the chicken. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook on medium heat for four minutes on each side.
Then remove chicken to a plate and set aside.
Add the 2T of butter, the apple slices, and the onion to the pan.
Top it with the garlic and bay leaves. Stir.
Keep stirring until the apple and onion start to color, about 5 minutes on medium heat.
Sprinkle with 2T of flour and stir for 2 minutes.
Place chicken back into the pan and pour on the apple cider.
Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for 12 minutes.
Spoon some of the yummy sauce over the chicken before serving. The apples and onions are incredibly delicious together. Just the right about of sweet and savory. When I make it again I might add a couple of shakes of salt while the sauce and chicken cooks. YUM!!
I sure hope I don't get my Southern license revoked for this, but I was looking for a recipe for apple cider bread online and found one...in Yankee magazine. :) It was wonderful, but don't tell anyone. It did not taste Southern, though. It does not have the dense texture and flavor of banana bread and I was looking for that for some reason. This bread is light in both weight and taste but I loved the intense cider flavor. (I modified the recipe just a bit and halved it so that I would only get one loaf.)
You will need:
1/2 cup butter (1 Smart Balance stick) 3/4 cups brown sugar (original recipe calls for white) 2 eggs 2 cups flour 3/4 tablespoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons cinnamon 1 cups apple cider 1 cups apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
Preheat oven to 375. (If I make this again I may reduce the temp to 350.)
Cream together the butter and sugar. Beat for one minute on medium speed.
Then add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.
In a small bowl mix together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Pour the cider into measuring cup.
Add 1/2 of the flour mix to bread batter, mix.
Then add all the cider, mix. Add the last of the flour and mix.
Peel and chop your apple...
and fold into the batter.
Pour the bread batter into a greased loaf pan and bake for 50-70 minutes. I baked mine for 60 minutes, but probably could have removed it after 55.
This bread is incredibly tasty, but I like my quick breads a bit denser.
Hubby and the kids slathered their pieces in butter and ate every last crumb. I personally feel that quick bread should be enhanced by adding butter, but not need it. This bread needed it, I thought. Yummy, but not perfect. If you try it let me know what you think!!
Usually I try to get in a few nutrition points when I bake, like switching out the white flour with wheat, sneaking in some wheat germ, or replacing oil with applesauce. Not this time, sorry. Unless you count the apples as healthy...but I don't think you can when they are drenched in butter and brown sugar. Oh, how you will love this recipe anyway. When I made my apple cider donuts I declared them the best thing I have ever baked. I take it back. I now think this cake is the best thing I have ever baked. (The kids cast their vote for the donuts, which is good because I used whole wheat in that recipe.) Please make this immediately and do NOT think about the extra minutes on the treadmill the next morning. Just relax and rejoice in the decadent deliciousness of this cake.
You will need:
2T plus 2 tsp butter (don't worry, it all works out without measuring) 1/2 cup brown sugar (light or dark) 1 medium apple ************* 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour 3/4 cup brown sugar (or white) 2 tsp baking powder 1/4 tsp salt 1 tsp cinnamon 1/3 cup butter, softened 2/3 cup cider 1 tsp vanilla 1 egg
Preheat oven to 350.
Cut the stick of butter so that you have 1/3 cup. That will leave you with 2T plus 2 tsp. See, no measuring!
Melt 2T plus 2 tsp butter in a 9-inch cake pan. I just did it in the microwave for 30 seconds on 50% power.
Now sprinkle the 1/2 cup of brown sugar over the top of the butter.
Peel and slice the apple. I did thin, but not too thin slices. I wanted them to cook through, but not disintegrate. (About apple choice: I used Fuji. Granny Smith would be too juicy for this recipe and you may end up with a cake that won't bake. Gala would be another good choice.) Then layer the slices on top of the sugar/butter. I barely overlapped the apples.
Set aside. In a large mixer bowl, add the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
Mix together and then add the butter, cider, vanilla, and egg.
Beat on medium speed for 3 minutes.
Pour over the top of the apples/sugar/butter in the cake pan. No need to grease the sides at all.
Bake at 350 for 40 minutes. My cake needed the full 40, but I checked it after 35. Make sure a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Let it cool for no more than 5 minutes and then invert the cake onto a serving plate or platter. Run a knife along the edges of the cake to loosen them. I put the plate on top of the cake pan and then flipped the whole thing over. (I was careful to use oven mitts on my hands so no caramelized sugar could drip out and burn me. Good thing I did because one of my oven mitts is covered in sugar.) It should pop out with ease.
Then dive in! This cake is best when still warm. We ate it without letting it cool at all.
The cake part is seriously good enough to eat alone with no apple/sugar/butter topping. The cinnamon couples with the apple cider flavor to knock you out of your socks!
Very moist, not at all heavy. Perfection.
Enjoy!!
(*note: don't forget to soak your pan after the cake is gone (and it will go FAST). The sugar and butter makes a caramel and you don't want that drying on your cake pan.)
Changing leaves, pumpkins on porches, and hot apple cider. Is it any wonder that autumn is my favorite time of year? Now that the weather has cooled off I can get back into my routine of sleeping in on Sundays and then baking something more exciting than cinnamon rolls. During the summer there is just no way I can justify turning on the oven and heating up the whole house, but in the fall...it is on! I wake up on Sundays to the sound of Bubba mowing the lawn and I entice him back into the house with the smell of cinnamon. French toast, bread pudding, muffins, baked donuts, scones, whatever I choose he walks into the house with a huge smile on his face.
I adapted this recipe from a blogger in London. I used white whole wheat instead of all-purpose flour and I baked the donuts in mini bundt pans. (Dear Santa, I need a donut pan. I have been a very good girl this year. Love, Sunshine Mom)
You will need:
mini bundt pans or a donut pan (muffin pans will work in a pinch) 2 cups white whole wheat flour 1 1/2 tsp baking powder 1 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp salt 2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp nutmeg 1 egg 2/3 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup finely chopped apple 1/3 cup pure maple syrup (the real stuff!) 1/3 cup apple cider 1/3 cup plain yogurt (I used Greek) 3T oil cinnamon sugar
I keep my cinnamon sugar ready to go at a moment's notice. You never know when the urge to have a piece of whole wheat cinnamon toast will hit you. Also good for jazzing up the kids' natural applesauce in their lunches.
Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. In a bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg and set aside.
Now for the apple. I used Fuji, but most any apple will do. Granny Smith would be fantastic. I would not recommend using Red Delicious as they can be kind of mealy. It does not matter at all if the apple turns brown, so don't sweat it. Peel...
then chop in medium size pieces.
Use a mini chopper or food processor to finely chop or even puree the apple. I like little bits of apple in the donuts, so I don't puree. I used a large apple so I ended up only using about 3/4 of it. Tink and I split the remaining pieces. (If you absolutely had to you could substitute applesauce, but try to get some of the excess moisture out of it first.)
In a large mixer bowl(I used my KitchenAid with the whisk attachment), whisk together the egg, brown sugar, apple, maple syrup, cider, yogurt, and oil. (*note: do not substitute butter for the oil. Using butter will cause the batter to create gluten and you will end up with a cakey donut. Oil keeps the donuts tender and airy like a fried donut.)
Switch to the paddle attachment or a large spoon and add half of the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined.
Then add the rest of the dry. Don't overmix!
Grease whatever pan you are using. I just used pan spray. Then coat with cinnamon sugar.
Spoon the donut dough into your selected pan. If you are using a mini bundt, be careful not to overfill. I filled my less than half full and made sure not to cover the middle separation so that I would get a real donut shape.
Bake at 325 for 10-15 minutes. My mini bundts needed the full 15 minutes. While they are baking, ready a small bowl with cinnamon sugar. (If you don't want to coat them in anything once they are baked, then omit the next few steps. You could also use icing like the original poster did.)
When they are done baking, loosen the edges with a knife and then turn out into your bowl of cinnamon sugar.
Completely coat all sides.
I do not miss the greasy fried donut when I eat these! And they are every bit as tender and light and even more flavorful. There is also a lot less guilt when you think about the yogurt and whole wheat. So eat two! I did...
Pour some apple cider into a champagne flute and treat yourself!
I created this food blog when my two girls were young, I was a stay-at-home mom, and I had not yet attended culinary school. Now I'm a classically trained chef with two college-age daughters. This blog will always be so special to me and I hope you enjoy my old recipes.
