These baked Golden Delicious apples are so naturally sweet they don’t need any added sugar or syrup to be delicious. However, this easy-to-make maple cheese topping turns them into a truly special, rich-tasting breakfast treat that can also be served for a healthful dessert.
Spoon the maple cheese topping over the baked apples while they are still warm and then sprinkle them lightly with ground cinnamon. For a festive garnish, place a fresh mint leaf on each apple.
Leftover apples make great maple-apple smoothies. Just chop up the baked apple and put it into a blender along with 1/4 cup of the topping and a cup of non-fat milk; blend until smooth. I sometimes make the smoothie and pour it over one of my favorite breakfast cereals instead of drinking it.
APPLES WITH MAPLE-CHEESE TOPPING
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
Baked apples:
4 medium Golden Delicious apples, cored
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Maple-cheese topping:
1 cup low-fat ricotta cheese
3 tablespoons maple syrup
2 teaspoons low-fat milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon sugar mixed with 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 mint leaves, optional
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1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Arrange cored apples, right side up, in oven-safe casserole or baking dish just large enough to hold apples. Add water to depth of 1/2-inch. Sprinkle tops of apples with cinnamon; add vanilla extract to water. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake until apples can easily be pierced with fork, about 45 minutes.
2. Combine ricotta, maple syrup, milk and vanilla in food processor fitted with metal blade; process until very smooth. Spoon topping on apples while still warm. Sprinkle with sugar-cinnamon mixture; garnish each with mint leaf if desired.
Nutrition information per serving:
Calories ………… 205 Fat ………… 5 g Saturated fat .. 3 g
% calories from fat .. 20 Cholesterol .. 20 mg Sodium ……. 80 mg
Carbohydrates …… 35 g Protein …….. 8 g Fiber …….. 3.2 g
Q. Please revise this wonderfully flavored recipe. It has too much fat, but I don’t want to lose the Italian sausage flavor. Thank you.
Jo Ann Nimrichter, Murrieta, Calif.
SAVORY ITALIAN RICE BAKE
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Yield: 6 servings
3/4 pound Italian sausage
1 onion, chopped
2 small zucchini, cut into
1/4-inch slices
1 clove garlic, minced
1 package (6.9 ounces) chicken-flavor rice mix, prepared according to package directions with 2 tablespoons butter
2 cups spaghetti sauce
1/2 teaspoon dried basil, crushed
6 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Remove sausage from casing and crumble. Cook sausage and onion in 10-inch skillet over medium heat until no longer pink. Drain, reserving 1 tablespoon drippings in skillet. Set aside sausage-onion mixture.
2. Add zucchini and garlic to same skillet. Cook over medium heat 1 minute. Cover; cook over low heat until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes.
3. Combine prepared rice, sausage mixture, 1 cup of the spaghetti sauce and basil in large bowl; spread in 13-by-9-inch baking pan. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the cheese; top with zucchini. Pour remaining sauce on top; sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake until heated through, about 25 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
Nutrition information per serving:
Calories ………… 405 Fat ………… 22 g Saturated fat .. 10 g
% calories from fat .. 48 Cholesterol … 50 mg Sodium ….. 1,375 mg
Carbohydrates …… 35 g Protein …….. 19 g Fiber ……… 2.7 g
A. Using a rice mix makes this recipe easy to put together. I made the rice without added fat. I used a smaller amount of turkey sausage instead of pork, keeping the nice Italian flavor. You might notice that the sodium is high. It would be smart to balance the rest of your day with low-sodium choices.
FLAVORFUL SAVORY ITALIAN RICE BAKE
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Yield: 6 servings
1/2 pound turkey Italian sausage
1/2 small onion, chopped
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2 small zucchini, cut into 1/4-inch slices
1 clove garlic, minced
1 package (6.9 ounces) chicken-flavor rice mix, prepared according to package directions without added butter or margarine
2 cups low-fat spaghetti sauce
1/2 teaspoon dried basil, crushed
6 ounces part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Remove turkey sausage from casing and crumble. Place turkey and onion in 10-inch skillet; cook over medium heat until sausage is no longer pink. Remove sausage and onion from pan; discard any fat.
2. Cook zucchini and garlic in same skillet over medium heat, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Cover; reduce heat to low. Cook until zucchini is crisp-tender, about 2 minutes.
3. Combine prepared rice, sausage mixture, 1 cup of the spaghetti sauce and basil; spread in 13-by-9-inch baking pan sprayed with non-stick vegetable oil spray. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the cheese; top with zucchini. Pour remaining sauce on top and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake until heated through and bubbly, about 25 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
Nutrition information per serving:
Calories ………… 335 Fat ……….. 15 g Saturated fat .. 6 g
% calories from fat .. 39 Cholesterol .. 45 mg Sodium …. 1,300 mg
Carbohydrates …… 34 g Protein ……. 19 g Fiber …….. 2.4 g
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