With the sizzling summer heat here and apple sales upon occasion, one of my favorite summer stand-by treats is the Apple Square recipe found on Allrecipes.com.  It’s pretty [...]]]> One of my more favorite ingredients to work with is apples.  There are many different dishes, condiments, snacks, and desserts that use apples as a foundation.

With the sizzling summer heat here and apple sales upon occasion, one of my favorite summer stand-by treats is the Apple Square recipe found on Allrecipes.com.  It’s pretty easy to make, can be doubled to make a big 13×9 pan, and travels very well in both hot and cold weather.  It makes a quick breakfast if you are on the run.  Simply warm it, add vanilla ice cream, and you have a very tasty dessert.  It also works as a tasty snack and people of all ages seem to love it!

Apple Squares

So one of my friends was mentioning that her and her husband eat potatoes [...]]]> Sorry for the hiatus people – the holidays were very nutty.  Now that things are getting back to normal, I’m back and in action.  Actually, I was always in action, just too lazy to post to my blog.  Bad Sarah.

So one of my friends was mentioning that her and her husband eat potatoes far too often.  They are both Polish (she’s actually from Poland) and if you know Polish food, you also know that they do eat lots and lots of potatoes.  Her issue with this is that far as a vegetable goes, it’s not the healthiest.  It’s high in starch, low in pretty much everything else.  When she mentioned that he was tired of eating sweet potatoes as a healthier substitute, I started to wonder if there was a healthy potato aside from sweet potatoes.

Well, turns out there is.  Sorta.  It’s purple potatoes.  They are still high in starch, but have the added bonus of being high in the same antioxidants you find in blueberries.  Best part is that they taste like russet potatoes – bland.  I saw them at Whole Foods and pounced in glee.  I’m sure the innocent bystanders at WF were weirded out by my exuberance over purple potatoes, but they just didn’t understand why I was hopping.  Or pumping my fist in the air.  My family eats a lot of potatoes too, so this WAS exciting!

See how pretty they are??  I can’t wait to make mashed potatoes – I hope they retain the purple tint.

On a side note, if you are looking for healthier alternatives to mediocre vegetables, check your farmers markets when they open in the summer.  Last year I found all sorts of goodies, including heritage tomatoes (see below), a purple cauliflower, and many other unique vegetables that are sure to bring in more nutrients than the GMO versions you will find at the grocery store.