Earthly Eating

Image: Rhode Island Greening Apple

Apples for applesauce: Look for soft-flesh apples, which easily dissolve to mush.

• Cortland: Sweet and tender American variety; peak season is October to January.

• Ida Red: A rich, sweet medium-size apple; peak season is October.

• MaIntosh: Tender, juicy Canadian, apple; peak season is September to June.

• Other good picks: Jonathan, Rhode Island Greening, and Winesap.

Apples for pies and cobblers: You want apples that can withstand heat without lossing their shapes or zing.

• Granny Smith: Tart, crisp, and popular for its versatility; peak season is April to July, but are available year-round.

• Golden Delicious: When this apple is fresh and mildly acidic, its crunch and flavor are unbeatable; peak season is September to May.

• Rome, or Rome Beauty: A tart apple that stays crisp longer than most; peak season is October to June.

• Other good picks: Northern Spy, Newton Pippin.

Apples for salads and sandwiches: It’s all about the crunsh here. Look for firm apples that crunch even when cut.

• Northern Spy: Considered one of the best all-purpose apples on the market; peak season is October.

• Gala: Sweet and crisp; peak season is August through September, but available from September through June.

• Winesap: A tar, firm, and aromatic apple that stores well; peak season is October to June.

• Other good picks: Golden Delicious, Granny Smith.

Apples for savory cooking: Tart varities go well with rich meats, such as sausages, pork and possibly even duck.

• Jonathan: Tart, tender, and brilliantly red; peak season is September to October.

• Macoun: A crisp and juicy green-market favorite; peak season is October to November (sometimes available through December)

• Rhode Island Greening: Tart and crisp, it’s chiefly a cooking apple; peak season is September to November.

• Other good picks: Granny Smith for rich meats; Brarburn or Cortland for chicken dishes.

Apples for snacking: Crispness is cruical. The tart-sweet debate is a question of taste in this category.

• Empire: A cross between a Red Delicious and a McIntosh; peak season is September to November.

• Fuji: Sweet and aromatic juicy and crisp; peak season is fall, but are available year-round.

• Red Delicious: Sweet, simple all-American apple; Peak season is September to June.

• Other good picks: Crisp and tart go for Granny Smith, Jonathan or Macoun. For Crisp and sweet go for Cortland, Golden Delicious and Jonagold.

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Earthly Eating Recipe:

Chicken Couscous
Serves: 4

1/2 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil or cooking oil
12 ounces boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch cubes
3 medium carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces (1 1/2 cups)
1 1/4 cups chicken broth
1 cup sliced celery
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/8-1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2 x 1/2 x 1-inch strips
2 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped
15-ounce can garbanzo beans, drained
1 cup couscous

In a large, heavy skillet or Dutch oven cook the onion and garlic in hot oil till tender but not brown. Add the chicken, carrots, chicken broth, celery, salt, cumin, turmeric, and crushed red pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the zucchini, tomatoes, and garbanzo beans. Cover and cook for 10 minutes more, or till chicken and vegetables are tender.

Meanwhile, prepare couscous according to package directions. To serve, spoon couscous into a serving bowl. Spoon chicken mixture over couscous.

Happy Eating!

The Flexitarian Table: Inspired, Flexible Meals for Vegeatrians, Meat Lovers, and Everyone in Between by Peter Berley (Houghton Mifflin): Berley defines Flexitarian as a vegetarian who occasionally eats fish or meat, or someone who is not a vegetarian but enjoys vegetarian meals.
Whole Grains Every Day, Every Way by Lorna Sass (Clarkson Potter): Incorporate more whole grains into your diet with this easy-to-follow book of recipes.
Raw Foods/Real World: 100 Recipes to Get the Glow by Matthew and Sarma Melngailis (HarperCollins): Learn about the benefits of adopting a raw-foods diet anbd lifestyle from two experts in the field. Kenney and Melngailis share recipes from Pure Food and Wine, their popular Manhattan restaurant.
Kitchen Playdates by Laren Bank Deen (Chronicale Books): Invite guests of all ages into your kitchen to prepare food and crafts based on themed playdates, such as “Dinner Swapo,” “Spice Treasure” and “Slumber”. Deen provides fun and practical ways to spend time with family and friends while cooking up a feast.
The Vegetables I Can’t Live Without by Millie Katzen (Hyperion): Katzen, who’s celebrating the 30th anniversary of her Moosewood Cookbook, has written again with this book of her favorite “pro vegetable” dishes that are so delicious and hearty that even the staunchest carnivore won’t miss the meat.
Mom-a-licious: Fresh, Fast, Family Food for the Hot Moma in You! by Damenica Catelli (Waterside Publishing): Feed the family simple and healthy food using recipes from Mom-a-licious. Catelli’s dishes are easy, innovative twists on classic foods. (Source: Kiwi 2007)

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Earthly Eating Recipe:

Apple Wrap
Serves: 2

1 tbs. organic mayonnaise
2 tsp. honey mustard
2 whole-wheat flour tortillas
2 cup washed and dried baby spinach leaves, loosely packed
4 thin slices Swiss, Muenster, or cheddar cheese, or nondairy cheese
1/2 cup Granny Smith apple, unpeeled and sliced paper-thin

Combine mayonnaise and mustard. Lay out both wraps and spread edges of each with the mayo/mustard mixture. Leaving a margin free on the side closest to you, arrange a layer of spinach leaves on each wrap. Top each layer with 2 cheese slices. EWvenly divide apple slices and lay them lengthwise across cheese. Fold over end of wrap thightly in foil or waxed paper and refrigerate, seam side down, up to 4 hours. Before serving or packing for lunch, unwrap and cut each one in hlaf at an angle.

Happy Eating!

This unique herb works as a cleansing agent that enhances digestive capacity and can be used to accompany many different meals and dishes. Try it with fish, vegetbales, chicken, pork and anything else you enjoy eating. Make it a part of every meal in some way or another to add enhancement to almost all dishes. You can add it to almost anything without even noticing it. It taste best in Mexican and Indian recipes and salsa mixes, as well as Asian dishes.

Try this Coriander Chutney recipe:

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup water
1 bunch fresh coriander (cilantro) leaves and stems
1/4 cup grated coconut
2 tablespoons fresh gingerroot, chopped
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper

Blend lemon juice, water and cilantro until the cilantro is chopped fine. Add the remaining ingredients and blend until the mixture forms a paste. The chutney will keep in the refrigerator for up to one week.

Other facts about coriander (cilantro):

• Spans the culinary globe and is featured in a variety of cuisines, including Southwestern, Latin, Caribbean, Mexican, Mediterranean, North African, Indian, and Southeast Asian.

• Calories in Coriander Leaf, Dried (2 calories per 1 tsp. -0.6 g) (5 calories per 1 tbs.-1.8 g).

• Calories in Coriander (cilantro) leaves, raw (1 calorie per 0.25 cups)

• The seeds have been well known and treasured from the Mediterranean to the Middle East, Indian and China since early history.

• Is one of the most commonly used spice (seeds) or herb (leaves). In India it is commonly known as Dhania in Hindi. In the western world Coriander is also know as Chinese parsley or Mexican parsley.

• Coriander has now been scientifically shown to relieve symptoms associated with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). In diabetes management it has been shown that Coriander acts in a manner similar to insulin and also helps in the secretion of Insulin.

Here is a video showing how to use Coriander and Mint Chutney. It’s fun to make and even great to eat.

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Earthly Eating Recipe:

Whole-Grain Apple Bake
Serves: 9

For the crust:
3/4 cupp all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
2 tbs. powdered sugar
2 tbs. softened butter
4 tbs. canola oil

For the filling:
2 large Gala apple, peeled, cored and cut into bite-sized chunks
1 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and cut into bite-sized chunks
1 1/2 cup natural, unsweetened apple juice, divided
2 tbs. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
2 tbs. packed light brown sugar
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup apple butter, preferably unsweetened
1/2 cup low-fat granola

To make the crust, preheat oven to 375°F and mix the dry ingridents together. Cut in butter and oil until mixture is completely combines. Press the cruts into the bottom of an 8×8-inch baking pan and bake for 15 minutes. Set aside to cool and reduce oven temperature to 325°F.

For filling, cook apples in 1 cup apple juice for 5 minutes or until tender in saucepan over meidum-high heat. Mix cornstarch with remaining 1/2 cup juice in a small bowl. Add to cooking apples, stirring constantly until mixture tickens. Stir in cinnamon, nutmeg, light brown sugar, and salt. Set aside.

With the back of a spoon, spread apple butter over cooled cruts. Top with cooked apple mixture. Sprinkle with granola and bake 20 to 30 minutes until hot and bubbly.

Happy Eating!