The Apple of My Eye

I forgot to take a picture of the finished product.  Here it is just before going into the oven.

The other day I realized that I had a couple of apples that had been languishing in the bowl for far too long.  They looked a little less shiny and felt just a little softer than when I had gotten them on my last trip to the farm stand.  Clearly these apples were the leftovers destined to shrivel up in the fruit bowl.  Upon closer inspection, I saw that there were also a couple of pears also on their last legs.

Well, when you have past their prime apples and pears, the best thing to do with them is to cook them.  What could be tastier than some homemade apple pear sauce?  I had some cranberries too so I knew I had the makings of something good.

I could have gone the minimalist route and just cook the fruit in water.  Good but uninspiring.  Or you can do a little doctoring up of the fruit and emerge with applesauce that's it's own food group.  You know me.  I went with the doctored up version.

The nice thing about applesauce is that while there's a bit of prep work, mostly it's just cooking time.  I think of making applesauce as sort of an inactive activity.  What could be better?  I got all the fruit prepared, popped it in the oven, and then did some laundry.  And some more laundry.  Nothing like multitasking while I cook.

I'll tell you this, there's nothing better than homemade apple-pear-cranberry sauce.  It's especially delicious served warm.  You'll love it.

Recipe:  Apple Pear Cranberry Sauce
(Adapted from Ina Garten)


Ingredients:



zest and juice of 2 large naval orange
zest and juice of 1 lemon
3 lbs apples 
3 lbs ripe Bosc pears 
1 cup fresh cranberries
1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
2 Tbsp unsalted butter 
1 tsp ground cinnamon


Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350.

Zest and juice the oranges and the lemon.  Place the zest and juice in an enameled cast iron Dutch oven.  Peel,

 core, and quarter the apples and the pears, placing the chunks in the Dutch oven

. Add the cranberries.  Add the brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon.  Cover the pot.

Bake for 90 minutes, until the fruit is tender.  (The apples will turn to mush on their own.  

 Use a whisk to mix until you have a smooth sauce with a few chunks.  The apples will fall apart, but the pears will break up into small chunk.