Since I’ve been posting about apple pies (both commercial and homemade) over the last couple of days I figured this would be a good time to post about apples….the fruit.

Are fruits part of a healthy diet…..yes. They contain fiber, vitamin C and smaller amounts of other vitamins. But they are made of mostly water and naturally occurring sugars. Does that mean that apples should be excluded from your diet? Now please don’t accuse me of being a fruit hater or think that I’m trying to discourage you from eating fruit but, depending upon your situation, fruits containing high amounts of natural sugar may need to be eaten in limited amounts. In some cases they may need to be avoided.

What in the world does that mean? For prediabetics and diabetics, if you eat an apple and test your blood sugar in 30 minutes or an hour and find that it has spiked up high and stays that way for a while before dropping then it may be time to rethink that apple. It maybe that you can avoid the blood sugar spike by eating a smaller serving or having the apple with some type of protein or fat (perhaps apple slices topped with a bit of peanut butter) to slow the release of glucose into your blood.

So how many carbs are in apples?

1 small apple approximately 2 3/4 inches in diameter (about 4 apples will weigh a lb) will have about 16 grams of carbohydrates from the natural sugars the apples contain and 2.9 grams fiber (16 g carbs – 2.9 g fiber = 13.1 grams carbs that will affect your blood sugar).

1 medium apple approximately 3 inches in diameter (3 apples per lb) has about 25 grams of carbs and 3.8 grams fiber (25 – 3.8 = 21.2 grams of carbs that will affect your blood sugar).

1 large apple approximately 3 1/4 inches in diameter (2 apples per lb) has about 31 grams of carbs and 5.8 grams fiber (31 – 5.8 = 25.2 grams of carbs that will affect your blood sugar).

So enjoy a fresh, delicious apple but keep their carb count and how it may affect your blood sugars in mind.

It’s still apple season here in Massachusetts. Granted most of the local farms are pretty much done with their picking and have resorted to trucking in apples from the other side of the state. But that’s still better then apples from some place like the other side of the country. Plus they still have Honeycrisp apples for a good price. That means it’s time to keep on canning and dehydrating before apple season is over and prices go up.

If your still getting apples just recently picked (when they taste the best) then it’s time to make some pie. Skip the pie crust and replace it with a streusel like topping. It’s super quick to make and tastes great! If you double the recipe you can make it in a 13 X 9 inch pan.

EASY APPLE PIE

3 medium to large apples, peeled, cored and sliced

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 cup Quick Mix

1/2 cup granulated sugar (or other type of sugar)

1/2 cup milk

1 tablespoon butter or coconut oil

2 eggs

Topping

1/2 cup Quick Mix

1/4 cup chopped nuts (almonds, pecans, walnuts, etc)

1/4 cup quick oats

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/3 cup butter

* Preheat oven to 325 F. Grease a 9 inch glass pie plate or an 8 X 8 inch square pan.

* In a bowl mix the sliced apples, cinnamon and nutmeg. Spread in pie plate or pan.

* In bowl stir quick mix, granulated sugar, milk, butter and eggs together until well blended.  Pour over apples in pan. In a small bowl blend together the topping ingredients until crumbly. Sprinkle over the filling in the pan.

* Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

TIPS: if you do not want to make your own homemade quick mix you can substitute Bisquik in its place. You can also use various other types of sugar in place of granulated sugar – palm sugar, rapadura, sucanat. For those who may be interested you can even replace the sugar with a sugar substitute such as splenda.

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Fight Back Friday at Food Renegade

Growing up the only apples I ever remember eating were McIntosh. If it was the holidays then there might be some big Red Delicious apples around because they came in a fruit basket or were on sale so you could make your own fruit basketsto give as gifts. Granny Smiths were for baking. That’s about it. There may have been other varieties but, if there were, we never bought them.

Fast forward twenty something years and now the grocery store seems to have a whole section filled with apples. Sure there are the plain old Mc’s, Granny’s, Red and Golden Delicious. Now there are Pink Lady’s, Cortland’s, Empire’s, Jonagold’s, Crispin’s, Ginger Gold, Macoun’s, Winesap, Gravestein, Fuji and some that I’ve only seen put on display once so I don’t even remember their name. Out of them all, the apple that makes us count the days until the local apple harvest is ready, is the Honeycrisp.

Once thought to be a cross between the Macoun and Honeygold, DNA testing has now shown that the Honeycrisp gets it’s juicy white, slightly tart flesh from neither apple. Personally I don’t care where they came from but I’m sure glad they are here. To me they are the most perfect, all purpose apple.

* They keep well on the counter

* They keep even longer in your refrigerator or a cool area

* They make great applesauce or apple butter (haven’t tried canned slices yet)

* They are great in baked desserts. They hold their shape and don’t turn to mush. They are just the right combination of sweet/tart

* They are the most incredible eating apple

Locally, apple season started early this year because the summer has been drier then normal. The local farms have said that their apples are smaller but much sweeter then years where there is more rain. So, if your looking to pick apples get them NOW. If your local farm has Honeycrisp pick a few. You won’t be sorry. At least not until you run out. Then you will cry. If you haven’t eaten all your Honeycrisp apples then give this recipe a try. It uses a homemade version of Bisquik.

Spiced Apple Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Frosting

1 1/2 cups Homemade Quick Baking Mix

1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup apple cider or apple juice

2 tablespoons butter or coconut oil

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 egg

1 medium apple peeled and chopped

* Heat oven to 375 F. Place paper baking cups in muffin tin. If you are not using baking cups then grease muffin tin.

* In a large bowl beat all the ingredients except the chopped apple with an electric mixer on low speed for 1 minute. Scrape the sides of the bowl. Increase the speed to medium and beat for another 3 minutes scraping the sides occasionally. Remove the mixer. Fold in the chopped apple with a spoon.

* Evenly divide the batter between the 12 muffin tins.

* Bake for 17 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean. Remove the cupcakes and allow to cool.

* Eat as they are or top them with the frosting recipe below

Salted Caramel Frosting

1/2 container of your favorite vanilla frosting

1/3 cup caramel ice cream topping

1 teaspoon kosher salt

Mix the caramel topping into the vanilla frosting. Frost the cupcakes. Sprinkle the salt over the top of the cupcakes. Sounds weird but tastes good. 

We don’t normally have frosting or ice cream topping hanging around. It was sitting in the refrigerator from a previous birthday party so I don’t know what brand they were. I would imagine just about any type of vanilla frosting, including homemade, would work just fine. My 8 year old daughter Rachel frosted all the cupcakes. Here’s what was left after we taste tested them:

This post is being linked back to the following blogs. Stop in to check out all the other great recipes, tips and ideas:

Real Food Wednesdays at Kelly The Kitchen Kop