Thank goodness for apple activities! If you’re enjoying the classic fall activity of apple-picking like my family did today, you’re probably also wondering why you picked so many! M.O.B. Truths to the rescue — here are EIGHT apple activities to help you make the best use of your massive pile of fragrant fall fruit.
In the kitchen:
Apple Pie Bars (granola bars)
Last year, I bought a super-easy granola bar pan, and now we love making granola bars for snacks! Here’s a new recipe from the granola bar pan inventor herself! I can’t wait to try this one, which is an update to the one I made last!
Apple Pie Bars
Delicious apple pie bars -- best made in silicone granola bar pan!
Recipe by Catrina Brewer
Photo by @jessieboydlifestyle
Ingredients
- 2 c. (200g) old fashioned oats
- 1 tsp (3g) cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp (1g) salt
- ⅓ c. (115g) honey
- ¼ c. (54g) coconut oil
- ¼ c (25g) ground flaxseed
- ⅓ c. (65g) almond butter
- 1 small apple, diced small
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In medium bowl mix oats, cinnamon & salt.
In saucepan over medium heat stir honey & coconut oil. Allow to simmer 1 min. Take off heat, stir in almond butter. Stir in flaxseed - cool for 5 minutes.
Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients - mix well.
Spoon equal amounts of mix into each cavity of the GBP - spread mix with spoon to reach edges. Sprinkle tops with diced apple & extra cinnamon, if desired.
Bake 15-18 minutes, until edges are golden brown.
Let cool completely. Pull sides away from middle of pan & push up from bottom to pop out bars.
Apple crisp
Delicious. Sweet. Sumptuous, with a bit of crunch. It’s a perfect sweet treat for the season. There are countless recipes out there — click here for one of my favorite recipes for apple crisp that is easy and delicious.
Apple muffins
There are soooooo many delicious recipes out there, ranging from really easy to a bit more complex. One of our favorites is one my son’s pre-school class made after they went apple-picking. Give it a try! I’m hoping to make these tomorrow, and I’m already getting hungry thinking about how amazing my house is going to smell when these are baking!
Apple Muffins
Simple, delicious apple muffins!
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup apple juice
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup apples -- peeled, cored, finely diced
Instructions
Heat oven to 400 degrees. Grease bottoms only of 12 muffin cups, or line with baking cups.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt -- mix well. IN a small bowl, combine apple juice, oil, and egg, and blend well. Add dry ingredients all at once; stir just until dry ingredients are moistened (batter will be lumpy). Then stir in the chopped apples.
Fill muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, or until toothpic inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool for 1 minute before removing from pan.
Serve warm for extra-deliciousness!
Notes
Recipe originally by Jenn Hall on allrecipes.com
Of course you can also make apple cider or applesauce out of all your apples, but that’s not in my plan right now!
Fruit party
Definitely make sure you EAT YOUR APPLES! I swear they taste better when you fresh-pick them yourselves than when you buy them at the store. One fun way to enjoy them is to have a fruit party, like my grandfather used to do when I was a kid. Make up a fun story, and with every new sentence or development of the story, slice the apple and hand out the slices for all who are listening to enjoy. I can still picture the exact knife my grandfather used when I was a kid, and where we sat in the kitchen, waiting for the next twist or turn in the story.
Crafts & Science & Fun:
Apple painting
I remember doing this as a kid. There’s nothing fancy or complicated about it! Cut the apple into whatever shapes you want, dip them in paint, and then press them or brush them onto paper to make your masterpiece. Basically like sponge-painting, but with apples!
You know I always keep it real with my readers — so I feel I have to admit to you that it was harder than I expected to get that little star shape to appear on the paper. The key — get paint on the flat surface of the apple, but not in the little crevices where the seeds were.
Apple science
Have you ever noticed how much the inside of an apple and the inside of a potato look alike? Cut pieces of both and have your child describe what’s the same and what’s different. Bonus STEM learning activity — if you have a microscope, check them out under there to see even more detail!
Apple volcano
This is one of our favorite things to do with food that is going bad — I hate wasting it if we don’t eat it in time, so we try to repurpose it for some fun learning when we can! Take a bruised or not-so-perfect apple you’re willing to spare, cut the core out of it, pour in a little bit of baking soda, then a little bit of vinegar, and watch it fizz!
Apple stacking
Think of this kind of like Jenga, in reverse . . . After I finally got most of our gazillion apples into a bowl, I struggled to get the final few. They just kept rolling off, so we of course made a game out of it. E had a much steadier hand than I did!
I can’t wait to get started on these activities! I’ve got A LOT of apples, so send me your favorite apple activities, too!
