Tummy Pleasing Autumn Menu

I just noticed my front yard tree's leaves changing color, and the leaves on my wild rose bushes are changing, too. There's a slight crispness to the morning air: Autumn is coming. Last week, I made beef stew and bought ten pounds of apples. The girls' lunches for Monday reflect my mood's shift from summer to autumn.

The same lunch with one difference. They both have sweet potato rolls, rotisserie lemon-pepper chicken (I have a George Foreman rotisserie that's wonderful! But deli rotisserie chicken is great, too, and usually a good grocery bargain.)with dried cranberries, slow cooker cinnamon apples, bacon-ranch bites, and apple cake with brown sugar glaze. Bayberry also has lettuce and tomato.

Bacon Ranch Bites:

Finely minced 2 carrots and 1 cup steamed broccoli and 1/4 cup red onion. Stir in 3 oz softened cream cheese and 8 oz ranch dip. Add 4 slices cooked, crumbled bacon. Spread on 8" round flour tortillas. Roll tightly. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours. Slice into pinwheels. (Mine got flattened a bit).

Slow Cooker Cinnamon Apples:

Peel, core, and slice 12 tart apples into 8 slices each. Place in slow cooker. Drizzle with the juice of one lemon.

Combine 1 cup brown sugar, 2 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp nutmeg, and 1/4 cup flour. Sprinkle over top, stirring to coat all the apples.

Drizzle 3 Tbsp melted butter over top. Cover and cook on low about 4 hours, until apples are soft but not mushy.

These are great warm or chilled.


The apple cake recipe -- I'll share it later in the week and post it here.