From chapter 2:30 AM: Late Night Rehab of Midnight Snacks, “try this fortifying concoction to hydrate your system, flush out some lingering impurities, and get your body rebounding with a vitamin booster shot.” The authors certainly don’t lack imagination. 

While the recipe is designed to stave off a hang-over, it’s a great early morning booster as well. Bonus: a full serving of fruit and veggies first thing in the morning, and then some. Normally, I adjust recipes to my liking, but this one was practically perfect. The only snag is the recipe is suppose to serve one, but I had plenty for two.

1 small papaya, peeled, seeded, and cut into chunks
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup apple juice
1/2 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into chunks
ice cubes (about 5-6)

Author’s instructions:

“Cast all the ingredients, along with any of the evening’s regrets, into the blender and puree.”

I do not advocate the peeling and seeding of fruits and vegetables, but in the case of papaya it is necessary. For the cucumber, it’s more about the texture of the smoothie. The only thing I added to this was a sprig of mint, just for show. If you really want to balance your breakfast, try yogurt or milk in place of the fruit juices.

Ripe papaya are more yellow than green and should yield slightly when you squeeze it.

Celebrate the beginning of National Chocolate Month without ditching all of your New Year’s resolutions with these deliciously dark brownies from Everyday Food. Instead of lots of oil and butter, these brownies use applesauce and reduced-fat sour cream (yes, that’s sour cream). Add some dark brown sugar and heart-healthy dark chocolate, and you’ve got moist brownies without all the guilt. “These brownies have a triple helping of chocolate: cocoa powder and melted chocolate in the batter, plus chocolate chunks on top” Everyday Food. If bittersweet chocolate is a bit too much for you to take, swap it for semi-sweet or use a 50/50 combination.

2 tbsp vegetable oil
3/4 cup all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce (not chunky)
1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream, room temperature
4 oz bittersweet chocolate (2 oz melted, 2 oz coarsely chopped)
2 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350F and lightly coat a square baking pan (8×8 or 9×9) with cooking spray.  

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, salt, and baking soda; set aside. In a slightly larger bowl, whisk together dark brown sugar, applesauce, sour cream, melted chocolate, eggs, and oil until combined. Add flour mixture and mix just until moistened (do not over mix).

Spread batter in prepared baking pan. Sprinkle top with chopped chocolate. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of cake comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, about 25 to 35 minutes.

Allow brownies to cool completely. Cut into squares. Share the goodness!

James sent me a great website with 50 autumn recipes to make in a crockpot. The first recipe listed was for hot cider, but with a slight twist. Inside of traditional apple juice, this beverage uses apricot nectar combined with spicy nutmeg and cinnamon sticks. Visit the website for more information and recipes here at Keeping the Castle. The original recipe comes from About.com. This recipe can be halved. We made this tasty drink for Thanksgiving, but it would be great at any holiday party…just set the crockpot on the table and let guests help themselves to a glass of cheer.

36 oz (4 1/2 cups) apricot nectar
2 cups water
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp cloves
2 (3 inch) cinnamon sticks

Combine all ingredients in a 4 quart or larger crockpot. Stir well and set crockpot to low. Heat for 2-3 hours, stirring halfway through.

Serve with a cinnamon stick if desired.

When I made the Apples Roasted with Root Vegetables, there was enough to feed a small army! I still had half of it left in the refrigerator, and decided to turn it into soup! You could either follow the original recipe and reserve half, or follow the recipe below if you just want to make the soup.

Here is the recipe, halved:

1 1/2 cups tart apples, cored and cut into wedges
1 cup carrots, peeled, cut into 3/4 inch thick rounds
1/2 medium onion, cut into wedges
1/2 lb small red skin potatoes, cut into quarters
1 large sweet potatoes, cut into 3/4 inch cubes
1 cups parsnips, peeled, cut into 3/4 inch chunks 
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp dried thyme or 1/2 tsp fresh chopped thyme
1/4 tsp salt

For soup, add:
2 tsp minced garlic
4-5 cups water or chicken stock
1/4 tsp nutmeg
pinch of red pepper

Preheat oven to 425F

Combine apples, carrots, onion, red skin potatoes, sweet potatoes, and parsnips in a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil, thyme,  and salt. Toss to coat and spread vegetables evenly on a large baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake 20-25 minutes, or until vegetables are tender and beginning to caramelize. 

Saute garlic over medium heat in a large saucepan for 1-2 minutes, until fragrant. Add 4 cups chicken stock or water, plus nutmeg and red pepper. Bring to a boil.

Add reserved vegetables. Simmer until the vegetables are warm (if using leftovers). Blend in batches, filling the blender halfway each time. Combine batches in a clean pot and add additional water or stock if too thick. Top with fresh ground black pepper.   

Shown below, garnished with a cinnamon stick:

Based on a tasty Fall recipe from www.MichiganApples.com, this dish combines tart apples with onions, potatoes, carrots and parsnips with light seasoning. The original recipe called for all of the apples and vegetables to be peeled, but I feel that peeling vegetables is a bit of a waste. I did peel the carrots and parsnips, but I wasn’t meticulous about it – a little bit of peel isn’t going to hurt anything. The recipe makes about 8 servings, so it can easily be halved if that is too much food.

3 cups tart apples, cored and cut into wedges
2 cups carrots, peeled, cut into 3/4 inch thick rounds
1 medium onion, cut into wedges
1 lb small red skin potatoes, cut into quarters
2 large sweet potatoes, cut into 3/4 inch cubes
2 cups parsnips, peeled, cut into 3/4 inch chunks 
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp dried thyme or 1 tsp fresh chopped thyme
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper 

Preheat oven to 425F

Combine apples, carrots, onion, red skin potatoes, sweet potatoes, and parsnips in a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil, thyme, salt and pepper. Toss to coat and spread vegetables evenly on a large baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake 20-25 minutes, or until vegetables are tender and beginning to caramelize. Remove from oven and serve.   

Root vegetables on a baking sheet:

Bake and serve: