When Apples are Plentiful...

As a very lovely apartment-warming gift from my Grandparents, we received a big basket of local apples.  Seeing as how we should really take advantage of the fresh available items in the fall, I've decided to tackle a few apple recipes.  I would love to be able to create some kind of apple/pumpkin concoction but we'll see what I come up with on my friend Google.

First on the list...Pork Medallions with Sauteed Apples

Purchasing a deep freeze was one of the smartest things we did - as a meat eater.  Jon buys large portions of meat (that I wouldn't even go near in a grocery store) which ends up feeding us for multiple meals and saving us quite a bit of money!  

Using half of a pork tenderloin we purchased (I'm going to say we used about a pound), Jon cut it into small medalions.  Combining 3/4 tsp of dried thyme, 1/2 tsp of paprika, 1/4 tsp of salt, 1/4 tsp of pepper, we sprinkled this over both sides of the pork and fried it in olive oil in a pan.

In another pan, I sauteed 1/4 cup mixture of sliced green onions and leeks, 1 garlic clove minced, and 1 tbsp of the vegan margarine that I use.  Once tender, I added cut wedges from 2 small peeled apples.  Stir and cook the apples for a few minutes.  

Combine 2 tsp of cornstarch, 2/3 cups of chicken broth, and 1/3 cup of apple sauce.  Once mixed, add to apples and bring to boil.  Cook and stir until thickened.

I ate the apple mixture with the pork, which balanced all flavors just nicely.  (As for our side dish, that was simply sweet rice and canned corn thrown in the rice cooker in case we needed a filling side...exciting, right?) 

Second on the list....Substitutions-a-lot Apple Muffins 

In one bowl:  Mix 2 cups of flour, 1/2 cup of maple sugar (in lieu of cane sugar), 1 1/2 tsp of baking powder, 1/2 tsp of baking soda, 1 tsp of nutmeg (should be cinnamon) and 1/2 tsp of ginger (should be nutmeg).

In another bowl:  Mix 1 cup of oat milk (would prefer almond or vanilla rice milk), 2 tbsp of apple sauce, 2 tbsp of canola oil, 2 tbsp of vanilla.

Add both together and stir. 

Peel and chop two apples and add to the batter mixture.  Stir and spoon into a muffin pan (I used cupcake liners to make it easier).  Bake at 350 F for 15 minutes.

Verdict?  Either I didn't cook them long enough or the substitutions make for an extremely odd, dense-like version of a muffin (see photo - quite obvious, eh?).  I probably wouldn't share these with friends, but I actually don't mind them myself. My cat likes them so much she chewed at the leftover paper wrapper for quite some time.....