Apples + Fall Recipes at The Arbour

I started cooking several years ago and have been slowly building a repertoire of original recipes.  Design and cooking are very interrelated, and I was told once in school that a good designer should be able to cook well.  When you think about how design and cooking interact with our senses, it makes complete sense.  Fall is also a very sensory related season with all of the beautiful colors, crisp air, and the ability to see our surroundings literally change in front of us.  It’s The Arbour’s favorite season!

Speaking of cooking, Patti has an apple tree in her backyard and for some reason this year, it has yielded a TON of apples, more than she can eat, so it was up to me to come up with a recipe that would store well and use up a lot of apples.  Applesauce is an obvious choice, but instead of just the basic sweet variety, I decided to try to come up with a savory version.  After a few misses in my quest, I came up with the following recipe.  It’s delicious with almost any meat and can easily be made vegan instead.  I know it sounds strange, but try it!

Jen’s Savory Applesauce

-1 generous tablespoon olive oil

-1 medium red onion, finely chopped

-1½ teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme

-pinch red pepper flakes (more or less, depending on your taste)

-5 cups peeled, cored and diced apples (the fresher, the better)

-½ to 1 cup of chicken or vegetable stock

-salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil over medium-low heat in heavy, lidded pan.  Add onion and a large pinch of salt.  Cook (don’t brown), stirring often until soft, about 7 minutes.  Add thyme, freshly ground pepper and red pepper flakes.  Stir and cook for an additional 2 minutes.  Stir in apples and mix well.  Add ½ cup of stock, cover and cook over low heat for 20 to 25 minutes stirring occasionally.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  (During cooking process, if the applesauce isn’t “saucy” enough, add more stock until desired consistency is achieved.)

Makes about 3 cups, enough for 6 large servings.

What are some of your favorite fall recipes?  Email them to me at jen@thearbourbellevue.com.  I’ll try all of them and post our favorites on the blog!

Jen