Huckleberries, Apple

Apple-Berry Baked Oatmeal

Huckleberries?  Never had them.  Never even seen them.  "Aren't good for eating fresh," says Katie Schwarz in her newsletter.  Really?  I never met a fruit or vegetable I didn't like so I had to taste one raw, all by itself.  Katie's right.  It tasted more like a vegetable (and a bland one at that!).  So...noticing the deep color of these delicate little fruits, and knowing that berries are some of the healthiest foods on the planet (Dr. Michael Greger, M.D. of nutritionfacts.org says we should eat them every day), I had a real desire to come up with a way to enjoy them.   It just so happened that this same week I saw a recipe in the Whole Foods newsletter for an apple-berry oatmeal bake.  Why not try the hucks I thought?  And for another idea to use some of your huckleberries, go to my previous post and scroll down for Breakfast Juice.

Apple-Berry Baked Oatmeal
The original recipe just calls for "2 cups frozen berries" so what is given below is the way I adapted it to use the huckleberries.  I have also veganized it by replacing the milk and yogurt with dairy-free versions and using "flax eggs" (see below).  This is a real delight to enjoy for breakfast or anytime of day - warm or cold.  Delicious! 


cooking spray

1/2 cup Clarion River Organics huckleberries, stems removed and rinsed
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 cup frozen strawberries, sliced
1/2 cup fresh or frozen mango, cut into small chunks
2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 Clarion River Organics apple, peeled, cored and grated (about 1 cup)
1 cup non-dairy milk (almond milk is nice)
1/2 cup vanilla yogurt (coconut, almond, or soy based)
1/3 cup maple syrup
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 flax eggs*

Preheat oven to 375°F. Oil a (9-inch) pie pan with the cooking spray; set aside. In a large bowl, stir together all fruit, oats, pecans, baking powder, and salt.  In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, yogurt, syrup, vanilla, and flax egg; stir into oat mixture. Transfer to prepared pan and bake until firm and golden brown on top, about 50-55 minutes. Cool 15 minutes.  Cut into slices and serve.  Great chilled too!

*To make flax eggs: whisk together 2 tablespoons ground flax (flaxseed meal) and 6 tablespoons water until creamy and frothy.  

Week 14 - Apples

Grilled Apple Cheese Sandwich

Do you really need a recipe for a grilled cheese sandwich?  No.  But perhaps you hadn't thought to take one of those nice crisp tart apples from Clarion River Organics and incorporate that into the traditional lunchtime favorite.  The result is delicious!

Grilled Apple Cheese Sandwich

1 small Clarion River Organics apple, sliced into thin rounds
4 slices sandwich bread
4 slices Daiya Swiss style cheese slices (or any cheese of your choice)
1 tbsp Earth Balance buttery spread 

Place one slice of cheese on each of two slices of bread.  Top each slice with the apple rounds dividing them evenly between the two sandwiches.  Top the apples with the other slice of cheese and then the second slice of bread.  Using about 1/2 tbsp of the Earth Balance "butter", spread a little on the outside of the top slice of bread.  Add the other 1/2 tbsp Earth Balance to a frying pan and heat over medium.  When the butter has melted place sandwiches, unbuttered side down,  in the pan and cook for about 3 minutes, flip sandwiches and cook about 3 more minutes or until cheese has melted.   Serve with a few Clarion River Organics carrot sticks.  Voila!  You have now transformed the lowly grilled cheese sandwich into a quick healthy gourmet meal!

Makes 2 sandwiches