An apple a day

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The old saying goes, ‘an apple a day keeps the doctor away’ and while we aren’t sure this is 100% true, they are packed with natural goodness and they taste pretty too delicious.

Go out in the countryside right now, and you are bound to come across trees bearing fruit that is ripe to pick, but once you have got them home, what can you do with them if you can’t munch your way through them as they are? Well, we have a few ideas.

Apple juice
There is nothing quite as delicious as fresh apple juice. Take your washed apples, cut out any bruises and then use a juicer to blast your crop. Put your smooth blend into sterilised bottles and either store in the fridge for several days, or if you have a lot then you can put in the freezer – but we suggest going for plastic, recyclable bottles for this. Add ice and drink alone, mix with a little gin or add to smoothies for a really fresh, vitamin-packed drink.

Apple pie
Who doesn’t like apple pie? This is a really easy, comforting way to use up apples and why not make extra and freeze some for those crisp winter afternoons when comfort food is on the menu but the shops are shut. We would say go for shortcrust pastry, cut and cook your apples in a little water and sugar, load in the fruit in a pie dish with some spices and extra raisins and your pudding is good to go in the oven to bake.

Apple crisps
Whether you have eating or cooking apples, you can make fruit crisps with your harvest. Slice the apples thinly, take out the core and pips, then place on a lined baking sheet with a little ground cinnamon and bake for about half an hour, turning over halfway through. Let them cool and store in an airtight container, and enjoy as a mid-afternoon snack, add to cereal or use them to top ice cream dishes.

Apple purée
If you have a lot of apples, making them into purée could be a good move and save any waste. Peel and core the fruit, then add them into a pan with about 1cm of water. Add some lemon zest and a little sugar, cover the pot and gently cook on a medium heat until the apples are soft and a little mushy. Freeze in pots, taking out what you need, when you need it and enjoy with roast pork, ham or add to some creamy custard for a sneaky treat.

Baked apples
The baked apple is the perfect last-minute dessert that looks wholesome and tastes divine. This simple winter pudding is budget-friendly and even more delicious when it is served with a huge scoop of vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of honey. Wash your apples and heat your oven to 200C. Mix cinnamon, brown sugar, orange zest, and lemon juice together then spoon the juice onto each apple, then bake for around half an hour. They should be soft and sticky when served but mind little mouths because the apples will be hot!

So, what are you waiting for? Get cooking!

Team Pure-Beauty

What to do with the leftovers

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almond milk, beansprouts, beef, bin, blender, bowl, Brussel sprouts, cabbage, cashew nuts, chicken, chopped, clementine, comfort food, cook, cranberry sauce, cups of spinach, dark brown sugar, favourite movie, Festive Bubble and Squeak, Festive Smoothie, festivities, food, fresh, Frozen, fruit bowl, garlic, golden brown, grate, gravy, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, hot, ice cubes, ingredients, leftovers, limes, liquid, mayonnaise, money, olive oil, parsnip, paste, plates, potato, red chilli, salt and pepper, serve, sieve, soft fruit, soy sauce, Spicy Noodles, spring onions, squeeze, supper, tofu, toss, tummy, turkey, vitamin, washed, waste, wok

With a tummy full of food and drink, you might be tempted to just chuck away the leftovers from the festivities, but don’t. It’s a massive bin and there is no reason to throw it in the bin.

We have had a look at how to get the most out of your festive feasts and hard-earned cash.

Spicy Noodles
Whether you have a plate of leftover chicken, beef, turkey or tofu, noodles are the perfect way to use them up.

For a fast and easy lunch or supper, you will need:

250g medium egg noodles
500g cooked meat or other protein
2 spring onions, peeled chopped
1 red pepper, chopped and seeded
One bag of prepared bean sprouts, washed and drained
The juice of two fresh limes
1 tablespoon of soy sauce
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 teaspoons of dark brown sugar
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 red chilli, thinly sliced

First things first, cook the noodles, then drain and rinse with boiling water and leave to cool. Mix the soy sauce, lime juice and sugar into a thin paste.

Next heat the oil in a wok and when hot add the garlic, chilli, meat and spring onions, gently fry for a couple of minute then add the noodles and the bean sprouts into the pan and cook for another minute or two.

Next add your sauce to the mix, toss everything together well and once all ingredients are piping hot, serve and add extra soy sauce if needed.

Festive Bubble and Squeak
This is the ultimate in post-Christmas comfort food and is great eaten in bowls watching your favourite movie.

To make four servings you will need:

1 medium parsnip
1 potato
Leftover Brussel sprouts and/or cabbage
1 garlic clove, crushed
Leftover turkey or chicken
A little gravy – around 2 tablespoons
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 large egg (free range)
Leftover cranberry sauce or mayonnaise

Peel the potato and parsnip, and then grate both into a bowl and spread the cabbage and sprouts.

Put the veg in a sieve and squeeze out as much liquid as you can, then put back into the bowl and beat in the egg as well as seasoning with the garlic, plus salt and pepper.

Once you have a sticky mess, shape into four small balls. Put the leftover meat into a pan and cook with the gravy over a low heat and gently cook until the turkey is warm. Next cook the balls for 3 minutes on each side until they are golden brown then add the cranberry or mayo and enjoy.

Festive Smoothie

As well as being left with plates of meat and veg, you will probably also find your fruit bowl is still full as people tend to opt for the chocolates over the apples and pears.

Don’t throw any of it away, instead use it to make a vitamin packed festive smoothie. For two delicious smoothies you will need:

2 apples, cored but with the peel left on
1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
1 clementine
Small handful of cashew nuts
2 cups of spinach (fresh or frozen)
1 cup of almond milk
Ice cubes

Start by adding the liquid to your blender, followed by the soft fruit. Blend on high for 30 seconds or until the smoothie is creamy, then add the remaining ingredients and ice. Blast until smooth and drink.

Team Pure-Beauty

Pumpkins are for more than just Halloween

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With Halloween fast creeping up on us, many people will be buying pumpkins and carving them out to create impressive doorstep decorations.

Rather than throwing the golden squash away, we have put together some easy to make, great tasting recipes that will help make your celebrations go even better.

Pumpkin Hummus

Hummus comes in many wonderful varieties and we love the creamy consistency of it when you make it with pumpkins.

You will need:
Around 500g of pumpkin flesh
A little olive oil
Garlic (we would say two cloves)
The juice of half a lemon
2 tablespoons of tahini paste
A 400g can of chickpeas, washed and drained
1 orange and one yellow pepper, deseeded and sliced thinly
Pitta bread and carrot sticks to serve

Firstly, heat your oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Scoop out the pumpkin and cut the flesh into cubes, discarding the seeds, drizzle with oil and cook for around 45 minutes, with the garlic.

Once cool, add the pumpkin and garlic into a blender together with the chickpeas, lemon juice and tahini paste and chickpeas. Add a little salt then blend until smooth and serve.

Pumpkin Soup

As well as being perfect for Halloween, this is a great winter warmer for fireworks night too.

The ingredients needed for one batch are:
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 medium red onion (finely chopped)
500g of pumpkin flesh
1 vegetable stock cube and water for dissolving
100ml of crème fraise
Salt and pepper to season

Put the onions in a large saucepan and gently cook for around 5 minutes, until soft. Then add the pumpkin flesh and continue to cook for ten minutes, stirring now and again. Make up the stock and add to the pan, using salt and pepper to season as required. Bring the mixture to the boil and then simmer until the pumpkin is very soft and golden. At this point add the crème fraiche then bring back to the boil. If you want super smooth soup, use a blender, then serve with warm crusty bread and enjoy.

Pumpkin Cupcakes
Everyone loves cupcakes and these seasonal beauties taste so fantastic you’ll want to eat them all year round.

For 12 cakes, you will need:

225g of self-raising flour
1 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon and the same of ginger
2 large eggs
150ml of vegetable oil
225g of caster sugar
150g of pumpkin, grated
½ a teaspoon of vanilla essence

For icing you will need:
50g of soft butter
200g of cream cheese
50g if icing sugar
½ teaspoon of vanilla extract
Pinch of ground cinnamon

Preheat your oven to 200°C/fan180°C/gas 6 and line your cake tin with paper cases – Halloween patterned ones if you can find them. Put the flour, bicarbonate of soda, ginger and cinnamon into a bowl. Pour in the oil, sugar and eggs into another bowl and beat until blended. Mix the wet ingredients with the dry, then add the pumpkin and stir together.

Spoon this mix into the paper cases and bake for 15 minutes, until well risen and firm but do not burn, then leave to cool.

Make the icing but mixing the butter and cream cheese until soft then stir in the icing sugar, vanilla and spices until totally smooth. Spread over the tops of the cooled cakes and if you can find some spooky sweets, add them to the top.

Whatever you do this Halloween, be safe and have fun.

Team Pure Beauty