Dried Fruit
Always good as a snack or added to trail mixes
Harvest Crumble
Ingredients:
1 cup Dried Apricots, chopped
1 cup Dried Peaches, chopped
1 cup Dried Cranberries and/or Raisins
4 apples, cored and sliced (skin on), 4-5 cups
Directions:
Mix dried fruit with enough water to cover in a saucepan and bring to a
slow boil. Simmer until fruit is reconstituted and the water is absorbed.
Mix with the apples and put mixture in a greased or sprayed baking dish.
Topping:
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup oats
1 cup brown sugar (more or less according to taste)
1 tsp. cinnamon
¾ cup butter or margarine
pinch of salt
Directions:
Mix ingredients and sprinkle over fruit. Bake at 375° for 30 minutes or
until topping is brown and crispy. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.
CROCK POT ROAST WITH
DRIED FRUIT
Ingredients:
2 onions, sliced
3 to 4 lb. boneless pot roast (2 inches thick)
1 (11 oz.) pkg. mixed dried fruit
3/4 c. beer
1 c. water
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 c. brown sugar, tightly packed
1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
2 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
Spiced apple rings
Place sliced onions on bottom of crock pot. Place roast on top of onions
(cut to fit pan). Cover with dried fruit. Mix remaining ingredients except
apple rings and pour over roast. Cover and cook on low setting 6 to 8 hours.
Top with spiced apple rings and serve. Makes 4 to 6 servings.
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SKILLET CHICKEN WITH
LEMON & DRIED FRUITS
Ingredients:
2 tsp. olive oil
3 lb. bone-in chicken pieces, skinned & trimmed of fat
Salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 1/2 c. mixed dried fruits (pears, pitted prunes, apricots, apples,
peaches)
2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice (1/2 lemon)
3/4 tsp. dried thyme
2 lemons, thinly sliced & seeded
In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add chicken and cook
for about 6 minutes per side, or until the chicken is browned. Remove the
chicken, season lightly with salt and pepper and set aside. Add 1/3 cup
water to the skillet, and stir to loosen and dissolve any brown bits stuck
to the pan. Stir in the dried fruit, lemon juice and thyme. Place the
chicken over the fruit in the pan and baste with the sauce. Arrange the
lemon slices over the chicken.
Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 30 minutes, or until the chicken is
no longer pink inside and the fruit is tender.
Remove the lemon slices and place around the edge of a serving platter. With
slotted spoon, transfer the chicken and fruit to the platter. Add 1/3 cup
water to the skillet and boil for 1 minute. Taste and adjust seasonings.
Pour over the chicken and serve immediately. Serves 6.
Dried Fruit and Nut Health
Bar
Ingredients:
1 cup pitted dates
1 ½ cup old fashion oats, finely ground or 1 cup quinoa flakes
4 ½ ounces (1 cup) pecans or walnuts toasted ½ finely ground and ½ coarsely
chopped
2 ounces (1/2 cup) unsalted macadamia nuts or almonds toasted ½ finely
ground and ½ coarsely chopped
2 ¼ ounces (1/2 cup) dried papaya cut into ½ inch pieces
1 ¼ ounces (1/2 cup) dried fruit chopped
2 ounces (1/2 cup) dried blueberries
2 tablespoons oat bran
3 tablespoons ground flaxseed
2 tablespoons wheat germ
½ teaspoons course salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons brown rice syrup or honey
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and place dates in a small saucepan, cover with
cold water and bring to a simmer. Drain, puree in a food processor until
smooth. Coat a 8 inch square baking pan with cooking spray. Mix oats, nuts,
dried fruit, papaya, and blueberries bran, flaxseed, wheat germ, salt and
cinnamon inn a large bowl. Mix in date puree and brown rice syrup or honey.
Press mixture into pan. Bake until center is firm and edges are golden about
25 minutes. Let cool in pan cut into 8 bars.
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Mothers Dried Apricot Pie
Dried fruit pies, which have a rich intensity quite unlike their fresh fruit
counterparts, were once commonplace in the Midwest.
Piecrust
¾ cups butter
2 ¼ cup flour (I use 1-1/2 cups white flour and ½ cup whole wheat)
1 teaspoon salt
¼ cup water
Mix flour and salt in a bowl then remove 1/3 cup of flour. Cut the butter
into the mixture until the flour is the size of small peas. With the removed
1/3-cup flour add the water to form a paste. Add the paste to your mixture.
Mix and shape dough into a ball, if it feels too dry and crumbly get your
hands wet and pat the ball. Cut the ball in half and roll out ¼” for a pie,
and the second half can be used for the top of the pie, or a second pie
shell.
For the Filling
2 cups dried apricots
½ cup sugar
1 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon butter diced
1 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon allspice
1 egg white
Snip apricots into quarters with scissors, then place them in a saucepan and
cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then reduce and
simmer until apricots absorb most of the water, about 20 minutes. Remove
from heat and stir in the sugar flour and lemon juice. Roll out half the
dough to fit into a 9 inch round ease into pan and add filling. Dot with
butter sprinkle with nutmeg and allspice. Roll out second half of dough and
place it onto of filling. Crimp edges and with egg mixed with 1 tablespoons
water brush on top of crust. Bake for 45 minutes and serve at room
temperature.
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Oatmeal Dried Fruit
Raisin Cookies
1 ¼ -cup butter softened
1 ¼ cup brown sugar
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoons baking soda
1-teaspoon salt
1-teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon cloves
3 cups quick cooking oats
1 to 2 cups dried fruit chopped
Directions
Preheat oven to 375. In a large bowl, cream together the butte and sugar
until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, and then stir in the vanilla. Sift
together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Gradually sir
this into the creamy mixture, and finally, stir in the oats and dried fruit.
Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the unprepared cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10
minutes in the oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes
before removing to a wire rack to cook completely. (Variation; add 1
teaspoon orange or lemon zest with the vanilla and or 1 cup chopped almonds
or walnuts with the dried fruit.
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Stuffed Loin of Pork with
Thyme
This fruit laden pork loin can be served warm, cold or at room temperature.
3 garlic cloves
4 tablespoons butter at room temp
1 (4 pound) boned loin of pork butterflied
6-8 dried prunes
6-8 dried apricots (try fresh and see what happens)
8 or more springs fresh thyme
1 ½ cups of dry sherry
Salt and pepper to taste
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mash the garlic and mix with 2 tablespoons
of the softened butter. Spread the mixture over the butterflied loin.
Alternate the prunes and the apricots in a row 1 ½ inches from the edge of
one long side of the loin. Carefully roll the loin up around the fruit and
tie with kitchen twine every 2-3 inches to hold it closed. Transfer the pork
to a roasting pan, seam side down. Spread the remaining butter on top and
add half the thyme sprigs. Pour the sherry over the meat and roast for 1 ½
hours. When roast is completely cooked (160 degrees on a meat thermometer)
place the roast on a serving platter. Decorate the top of the roast with the
remaining thyme sprigs, and slice thinly.
Orange and Dried Fruit
Coffee Cake
¼ pound (1/2 cup) butter
Grated zest and juice of 1 large orange
¾ cup light brown sugar, packed
2 eggs at room temperature
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
21/4 cups flour
¾ cup buttermilk
1 cup dried peaches, cherries, cranberries, chopped dates or chopped prunes
½-1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 9x 13inch baking pan or
a kugelhoft pan. Cream the butter with the orange zest and sugar until light
and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until smooth, thn stir in
the juice and the salt, baking powder, and soda. Alternately add the flour
and buttermilk, inthirds, beating just until smooth, then foild in the dried
fruits and the nuts. Bake until lightly brownee and firm to the touch and a
skewer comes out clean, about 45 minutes.
Suggestions on the dried peaches, cut them into smaller pieces-in half or
quarters. You could add a tad (1 tablespoon to a ½ pound) of water to them
1-2 hours befor hand so they are softer before using.
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Winter Soup of
Dried Fruits with Tapioca
The tapioca pearls are invisible but give it a silky quality. A great winter
dish to have on hand, it keeps for weeks refrigerated. Give the pearls a
head start with an overnight soak before cooking.
¼ cup large tapioca pearls
1 cup dried peaches or apricots
1 cup dried pitted prunes or Mission Figs
1 cup dried pears
½ cup golden raisins
½ cup dried cherries
2-3 inch cinnamon sticks
4 slices of ginger
1 quart water or pear juice plus extra as needed
Sour cream or drained yogurt, optional
Cover the tapioca and fruit with water and set aside to soak overnight.
Drain, then put it in a soup pot with the remaining ingredients except the
sour cream. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and cook slowly, partially
covered, until the tapioca pearls are clear, about 2 hours. (Some people
like to see a little eye in the center, which gives them their other name,
tapioca fish eyes.) Gently give a stir every so often so that nothing sticks
to the bottom. IF the soup becomes too thick, add water or juice as needed.
Serve warm or chilled for breakfast or dessert, plain or with a spoonful of
sour cream or drained yogurt.