The proverb ‘An Apple A Day keeps a Doctor Away’ proves the importance of the fruit for our health. An Apple recognised as one of the most beneficial fruits available in the market. Doctors even advice to include it in our regular diet in whichever way possible. The fruit is not super costly, tastes good, has a unique flavour and can be added to many a dish to enhance its taste. Not only in dishes, but an Apple can use in many other ways in a productive manner.
1.Apple Sandwich
An apple slice, though it may sound unconventional, can easily be added to a sandwich along with cheese, cucumber and meat or other veggies. A few small slices of apple can upgrade the quality of the food and if one takes the sandwiches as a breakfast, it would be one of the healthiest meal to him as it includes veggies, fruits and protein regarding cheese. We often get bored with the same old egg or chicken sandwich with a vegetable or two. So adding an Apple would not only add a flavour but would also bring change to the taste bud.
2.Apple Custard
Apple custard is a very popular dessert among everyone and a regular food for the mothers as it is quite popular among kids. It is a simple recipe as well as healthy. Through this dish one gets an ample amount of milk as well as fruits. An apple custard recipe mentioned below:
Ingredients: Milk (500ml), Custard Powder, Sugar (3 tablespoons), an apple( cut into small pieces)
Recipe: First 450 ml boiled milk
In another bowl, take 50ml of cold milk and add three tablespoons of custard powder and stir well. Add this mixture to the boiling milk. Keep it in flame for 5-7 minutes.
When the custard mixture becomes thicker add the sugar. Keep it stirring for two more minutes. Finally put off the flame, add the apple pieces and let it cool in normal temperature. You can have it either hot or can keep it in the refrigerator and have it chilled.
3.Apple Cake
A cake with apples is another delicious recipe one can try. The presence of apple in the ingredients makes it more healthy and acceptable to everyone. Another simple method, which can add a wonderful flavour to the dish. The recipe is as follows:
Ingredients: 5 eggs, 250-gram flour, 250-gram sugar, vanilla essence, two teaspoon baking powder, 100gm butter (without salt), pulp of an apple.
Recipe: Beat the eggs with a blender. Add flour and baking powder to it. Keep blending. Add sugar to it and continue to whisk unless the sugar mixes properly. Add a teaspoon of vanilla essence and finally add the apple pulp. Add butter to it and give a final whisk. Now Grease an oven tray with some butter and pour the cake mixture into it. You can bake it in cake oven for 30 minutes or in microwave convection at 180 degrees for 20 minutes.
Add a few apple slices on the top and your apple cake is ready. It is a must cook for children who do not like to eat the apple.
4.Apple Chips
You want to do some munching on chips, but your increasing weight is becoming an obstacle to it? Then say hello to the apple chips that as much crispy and crunchy as those potato chips, but are still not hard on your weight. It is easy to make in the home and can save the extra calories you would have put on by gorging on those potato snacks. The recipe for apple chips is:
Ingredients: Apple slices( 3 apples), two tablespoon ground cinnamon, one tablespoon ground ginger, one tablespoon ground cloves and one tablespoon ground nutmeg.
Recipe: Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Wash and slice the apples and place them on the baking sheets. Mix the spices together and sprinkle them over the apple slices, bake the chips for at least an hour. Bring the chips out, change the sides, sprinkle the spices on the other side and cook for another hour. Finally, keep them at room temperature for some time and you can have apple chips at a go.
5.Apple Pancakes
Apple pancakes are one of the most popular dishes worldwide. It is healthy, lip smacking and is loved by many. This dish is easy to cook and is a morning delight to many. It takes 15 to 20 minutes to prepare so can save many a host from the awkward situation of what to serve an unwelcome guest. The recipe is
Ingredients: 3 cups of sliced apple, two teaspoon sugar, ½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon, ¼ cup all-purpose flour, ¼ cup skim milk, ½ teaspoon vegetable oil, one egg beaten properly, one teaspoon vegetable oil.
Recipe: take the apple slices, sugar and cinnamon powder and mix well. Place them in a pan and cook over normal heat. Then set it aside and keep warm.
Combine the sugar and flour and mix well. Combine milk, vegetable oil and egg and stir with a whisk.
Spray cooking oil in a saucepan, add oil and preheat oven to 450 degrees for 2 minutes. Pour batter and bake it at 425 degrees for 15 min.
Remove the pancake, add warm apple mixture and sprinkle some powder sugar over it. Have a delightful and healthy pancake.
6.Apple Pulao
Bored of the same peas or Kashmiri pulao with peas and fruits respectively? Give your tongue a change with Apple pulao. A plate of apple pulao is not only full of satiety value, but also good to health as one gets a plenty of apple slices in it. The recipe is not terrible either. One can make pulao is standard and only add a lot of apple slices to it. It would add a sweet flavour to the pulao and would also taste fantastic with a spicy side dish. One can also add dry fruits like raisins, cashew and almonds to it.
7.Apple Shake
Those who can think to belong mango and pineapple shake can surely give a try to this. An apple shake is a 5 minutes recipe, which only needs some whole milk, powdered milk, a finely chopped apple and sugar or honey. For young and old alike, this shake can give a boost to their diet, add that hale and hearty factor to it and can also keep them full for long hours. So one should intake the apple shakes at least twice a week.
8.Chicken Salad with Apple and Raisins
This whole grain apple salad with chicken can vouch for one’s good health. This salad can be served as an appetiser and can add a great satiety value to the menu. The ingredients required are quite common. It is also very easy to make and is popular among both kids and adults. The recipe for this salad is as follows:-
Ingredients: ¼ cup low-fat mayonnaise, one teaspoon curry powder, two teaspoon water, 1cup chopped and boiled skinless chicken, ¾ cup of chopped apple, 1/3 cup diced celery, three tablespoon raisins, 1/8 teaspoon salt.
Recipe: Mix the mayonnaise, curry powder and water in a bowl and mash with a whisk until well mixed. Add the chicken, chopped apple, raisins, celery and salt to it. Mix it well and keep it to cool. This dish served best after being refrigerated for at least 4 hours.
9.Celery Apple Salad
This salad is again a good item, especially for those who want to lose weight and those who want to stay fit. Salads not always mean only green leafy vegetables, but can also be prepared with fruits like apple. Moreover when celery and apple come together, it can be termed as an excellent combination. The salad can make in less than 10 minutes and thus it is a favourite of the cooks. The recipe mentioned below:-
Ingredients: 2 tablespoon olive oil, two tablespoons fresh lime juice, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper, 2 cups of thinly chopped honey, 2 cups sliced celery, ½ cup parsley, 1/3 cup sliced red onion.
Recipe: Add the first four ingredients and then combine the apple and the remaining ingredients. Toss it well and the salad is ready to be served. It will sufficiently serve 6.
10.Grilled Apple
Grilled Apple is one of the most underrated apple dishes. It is stress-free to make grilled apple and is a menu for health-conscious people. The roasted apples can be teamed up with many other dishes like chicken or pork. If needed to be used as a dessert, the grilled apples can be served with low-fat ice-creams as well. Cooked apples can be mixed with cinnamon powder and honey and acted as a light dessert item. Three apples used for grilling can help four people at a time.
11.Apple Soup
Apple soup may sound unfamiliar to many, but this flavoured dish can make any day warm and better. Adding apple to the soup as a primary ingredient makes the soup rich and creamy and can also cut off the monotony that one tastes like sweet corn or hot and sour soup. Don’t consider it as a menu for the sick, it is delicious enough to be included in any random list.
12.Ripen Fruits
Apple is a saviour when it comes to ripening other unripe fruits. A ripe apple is one of the different fruits which does not spoil its surrounding fruits. Rather when one is in need of ripening some unripe fruits, he or she can just put those fruits along with one or two ripe apples in a paper bag. Apples emit ethylene, a gas that quickens the ripening of fruits and thus is one of the most natural ways to make fruits ripen.
13.Apple Butter
If one has had enough of butter or margarine and needed to switch on to something healthier for his breakfasts, then making apple butter is the best option. The apples just need to be simmered and pureed and then it can be quickly spread over the bread toasts and bagels. It is an excellent menu for those, who look forward to a better breakfast option. It tastes good, easy to make, it quite cheaper if made in a large quantity during the fall and is good for the body too. What else one needs!
14.Use as Marinade
Don’t be surprised! An apple can be made into pulp and then added to garlic and other spices to marinade meat and chicken. It makes the meat tender and tastier. In fact, there is quite a recipe which instructs to use Apple as a marinade for the flesh. So while marinating, if you don’t have hung curd at home then no need to worry, you can only use a ripe apple in its place and do the same.
15.Add in Fruit Jam
Whether it is a mixed fruit jam or just apple jam, this fruit can be used as a primary ingredient to make jam without much sugar added to it. If you are doing at home, then the extra amount of sugar can be avoided and preservatives can also evade. One needs to make a pulp of the apple by first chopping it into small pieces. The cut pieces should be added with lemon and cooked in a deep bottomed pan unless the apples break down. Then add honey and sugar to it and stir well. It should boil unless the mixture starts being jammy. Finally one can cool it and serve it with bread or bagel.
16.Apple Gratin
The fruit becomes unrecognisable when it is made into a gratin. It is an easy way to in which the fruit is mixed with eggs and then popped into a boiler. This recipe results in a protein-rich grain which is excellent to include in high protein diet.
17.Apple Ice Cream
To add a pinch of healthiness into dessert, one can only add a few slices of apple to any flavour of ice-cream and serve as a dessert. It will not only make the dessert healthy, but also presentable. If one needs to make it healthier, then replace the ice-cream with yogurt.
18.Add them to Sprouts
Sprouts are a healthy option and are on the menu for many throughout the year. Sprouts could make more delicious, if they paired with apples and butter. This original item can tickle taste buds of many, who are enthusiastic to try something new.
19.Softens Brown Sugar
It happens to us many times that we find out our brown sugar to calcified into a couple of grainy bricks. But here is a solution to this problem as well. An apple slice, if kept in a bag of calcified brown sugar for a few days, can bring back the grainy texture without any hassle.
20.Keep Baked Items Moist
If you want to keep a baked item for a longer time, you just need a single preservative, and that is an apple. For example, if one needs to keep some cakes for a few days, then one just needs to maintain the cakes in an airtight container along with half an apple. The moisture of the apple will help to keep the cakes soft.
So one can get a clear idea regarding how an Apple can use other than eating it raw or throwing it away because it has ripened. The fruit proves to be quite beneficial not only just as a fruit but as a marinade, a primary ingredient for jam, pickle, soup and what not. Therefore, don’t forget to apply these methods in your kitchen and produce something out of the ordinary.
