Sometimes, when I have an excess of organic fruits or vegetables from the farm and haven’t found independent inspiration for their preparation, I type what I have into a search box and see what pops up. Though I have over 200 cookbooks, I still go straight to the Internet. Today, I was overwhelmed with the number of apples and cranberries I had leftover from the holidays. Perfectly. Delicious. Organic. Local. Apples. And. Cranberries.
A search on Google led me to Deb’s recipe for Apple Cranberry Crisp over at Smitten Kitchen. It was beautiful. Beautiful photos. Beautifully written post. But it was way too complicated for me. Well, really just too many steps.
A search on the Food Network site lead me to Emeril Lagasse’s Apple Cranberry Crisp with Oat Topping and Cheddar Cheese. I never really got into him, but lots of ingredients already in my kitchen and very few steps. I’m all about easy, especially when baking. I followed the recipe closely, except for one huge thing. Walnuts. My husband hates nuts in food. Don’t ask me why. Perhaps he’s nuts? So I omitted the walnuts to ensure he’d enjoy the dessert with me. I mean who wants to be stuck with a full 13X9 inch pan of gooey, sweet crisp? Well, me. But my doctor and waistline would be very unhappy with me. So no walnuts.
So here’s what we think:
My sister: “I thought it was very good.” She had no idea that there was a layer of white cheddar cheese on top. She thought the cheese did nothing for the dessert, but loved it anyway.
My husband: “I thought it was good, but would have thought it was better if it wasn’t forced on me when I was already full.” It’s true; I encouraged him to eat it right after dinner because I so wanted to dig into it. I didn’t force him but once he saw me assemble my bowl with ice cream, he insisted that he couldn’t wait if I wasn’t waiting. So really it’s all his fault. And, contrary to the sister, he believes the cheddar cheese is necessary; it adds a nice texture thing for him.
Me: “Yummy.” I really liked it and have decided to add it to my recipe drawer. My recipe drawer holds those dishes I make over and over again. This would be a nice crowd pleaser. Next time, I plan to reduce some of the sugar. I mean, come on, Emeril – three cups total? It was a bit excessive to me. But it tasted damn good.
