Many years ago, as a 22 year old Mom, I thought that Shake ‘n’ Bake pork chops alongside some Kraft® Macaroni and Cheese was a healthy meal, especially when served with Musselman’s® Spiced Apple Rings.
I don’t serve any of that stuff anymore, obviously. Once you know better food (and know the ingredients of most of this processed stuff), you cook better food.
But the spiced apple rings were always a family favorite. So here’s my version, minus the high fructose corn syrup, natural spice flavor (described as “highly processed and containing many chemical additives”), and red dye #40.
INGREDIENTS
1 750 ml bottle of Pinot Noir or spicy Zinfandel - I like Double Black
1/2 cup sugar
2 Honeycrisp Apples
1 orange
3 cinnamon sticks
Optional for dessert: 12 caramels, whipped cream, nutmeg
METHOD
In a saucepan, combine the wine and sugar.
Bring to a boil and reduce to 1 cup liquid, about 45 minutes. Remove from heat.
Peel and core, then slice the apples and place in the liquid. Using a vegetable peeler, remove the skin from the orange, avoiding the white pith, which will make the sauce bitter.
Add the orange skin and cinnamon sticks to the wine and apple mixture. Let cool completely.
Once completely cool, pour the entire mixture into a Ziplock® bag and chill in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours and up to 5 days.
Serve the apples, discarding the juice, as a side to pork or any rich entree.
If you’d like to serve this as a dessert, (as shown in my picture)
, place the caramels and about 6 tablespoons of the juice into a microwave safe bowl. Cook on hot for 90 seconds, until you can thoroughly incorporate the caramels into a smooth sauce with a spoon. Depending upon your microwave, it may take longer to heat properly.
Place a few apple slices in a dish, heating the apples first if you like, and drizzle with the sauce, topping with some whipped cream and freshly grated nutmeg.