Using Seasonal Fruit To Help Your Grocery Budget

One way to reduce your grocery bill is to use fruits that are currently in season. Of course fall brings all the apples! Right now some of my favorite apples are marked to 99 cents in the grocery store, so this is the time for me to cook with apples, and also store some away for the winter.

Today I’m sharing some of my favorite apple recipes with you so you can reduce your grocery bill, and also enjoy this delicious fruit while it’s plentiful and in season!

These Crock Pot Apples are the best way to fix cooked apples for a crowd. You could cook them on the stove if you need them faster than a crock pot would allow. They taste like Cracker Barrel’s apples! They are great for breakfast, but also go great with a meal like Pinto Beans and cornbread!

Change up your salad routine with this amazing salad that combines greens, apple slices, blue cheese and a homemade Honey-Dijon salad dressing. This is absolutely delicious! I make this salad a LOT in autumn.

Apples at breakfast time can be enjoyed with this Baked Oatmeal with Apples, Cranberries and Pecans. This is a yummy do-ahead breakfast that can be ready and waiting for you in the morning!

Another breakfast option is this Buttermilk Apple Coffee Cake. It’s so moist and has just the right amount of sweetness to add to a breakfast meal. It would also make a great cake for brunch, or a snack!

Apple desserts are plentiful, of course! I have a favorite Apple Cake with Caramel sauce that I’ve made for years that is my absolute favorite! Then I found a lighter version that I make when I want to cut back on the calories. This one is good too, just not quite a “special.”

Of course Apple Pie is always a great choice and this Award Winning Apple Crumb Pie is as superb as it’s name suggests. These Apple Dumplings are amazingly simple, and two Granny Smith Apples will make 16 dumplings! This recipe calls for Mt. Dew to be poured over the apples to make a sauce. I recently made a Brown Sugar Sauce instead to pour over the dumplings when I served them (after being baked) and we loved it!. Here’s the recipe for that:

Brown Sugar Sauce for Apple Dumplings
SAUCE: 1 cup brown sugar (or coconut palm) 1 cup water 2 tablespoons butter 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon Bring this mixture to boiling and thicken with cornstarch (you can use a thickening agent of your choice). Serve dumplings warm with sauce and ice cream.

I hope these recipes inspire you to make the most of Apple Season! If you don’t use them now, you could always freeze the apples for future use!

What’s your favorite way to use apples? Can’t you just smell the house now?!

Refresh your grocery budget with apples!