Maple Praline Directions:
Place the bacon slices in a large skillet, cook over high heat, turning, until evenly browned. Drain the bacon slices on paper towels. Toast pecans in the preheated oven on an unlined baking sheet until golden brown and aromatic. Set aside to cool.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Stir the maple syrup, butter and both sugars together in a large skillet over medium-high heat and cook, stirring constantly, until a foamy caramel, and a candy thermometer reads 270F. Quickly stir in the pecans. Toss the bacon strips into the mixture to coat each strip, remove the bacon with tongs and place on prepared baking sheet to cool.

Clafouti Directions:
Sift flour, sugar and baking powder into a bowl. Make a well in the center and add the eggs, maple syrup and vanilla. Mix well to form a smooth batter. Add the melted butter. Let batter stand while preparing the apples.

Peel, core and chop the apples. Raise the preheated oven temperature from 350F to 450F. Butter an 8″ round cake pan. Stir the apples into the batter and pour into pan. Bake for 30 minutes or so, until a toothpick insterted into center comes out clean. Immediately crumble maple praline bacon over top of hot clafouti. Cool in pan for 5 minutes, remove from pan onto a wire rack. Can be served warm or cold. Yum!

Crust Directions:
Mix crumbs, butter and 2 tablespoon Pioneer Golden Lt. Brown Sugar, and press mixture onto bottom of 9″ spring form pan.

Filling Directions:
Beat cream cheese, 1 cup of Pioneer Golden Lt. Brown Sugar, and vanilla together with an electric mixer until well blended. Add sour cream; mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, until blended. Pour mixture over crust.

Topping Directions:
For topping, mix 1/2 cup Pioneer Golden Lt. Brown Sugar, apples, pecans and cinnamon, then gently spoon over the filling.

Bake 55 minutes or until center is almost set.

Cool on baking rack. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Gently slide a butter knife around edge or spring form pan before releasing the pan’s edging. Let stand at room temperature 15 minutes before serving. Refrigerate remaining cheesecake. Enjoy! Makes 12-16 servings.

Cake directions:
In a large bowl, mix together cake flour, Pioneer White and Brown Sugars, spices, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add eggs, oil, buttermilk, vanilla and rum extracts into dry mixture. Beat on low for 3 minutes. Stir in applesauce, grated apples, raisins and walnuts. Pour into 3 greased and lightly floured nine-inch layer pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick test comes out clean. Allow cake layers to cool fully before applying the cream cheese frosting.

Frosting directions:
In a small bowl, beat cream cheese, cinnamon, apple cider or apple juice, butter, vanilla and rum extracts until fluffy. Add Pioneer Confectioner’s Sugar. Beat until smooth. Frost the layers, stacking as you go.

After the cake is fully frosted, sprinkle the reserved walnuts on cake top (optional).

Crust:

• ¾ cup + 2 tbsp. all purpose flour
• ½ cup or 1 stick margarine or butter, softened
• ¼ cup Pioneer® sugar
• ½ tsp. vanilla

Blend together flour, margarine, sugar and vanilla until a soft dough forms. Press into an 8 inch spring form pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Cover bottom and about           1 ½ inches on the sides of the pan to form a nice crust.

Filling:

• 1 8-oz. package cream cheese, softened
• 1 whole egg
• ¼ cup Pioneer® sugar
• ¼ tsp. vanilla
• ¼ tsp. ground cinnamon

Blend together cream cheese, egg, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon until a smooth batter forms. Pour batter onto crust.

Topping:

• 1 small Michigan Ida Red Apple, peeled, cored and sliced
• 2 tbsp. Pioneer® sugar
• 1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds

Combine apples with the sugar and cinnamon; toss to coat.  Place the apple mixture on top of the filling. Sprinkle almonds on top of apple mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 60–70 minutes. Cool, and remove from pan to serving plate.                       

Refrigerate until service.

• 2 Michigan Apples*, cored and diced
• ½ cup red onion diced
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tbsp. garlic - minced 
• 1 tbsp. fresh ginger - minced
• ¼ cup red wine vinegar
• 1 cup apple cider
• 1 orange (segmented out)
• 2 tbsp. Michigan honey
• 2 tbsp. diced roasted red peppers (from jar/can is ok)
• 1 tbsp. chopped cilantro
• 1 tbsp. butter
• salt and pepper to taste

*Suggested varieties: Red Delicious, Fuji, McIntosh

Use a sauce pan and heat on medium heat. Add olive oil to the pan. After the oil is warm add the onions and sauté until slightly tender which will be about 2 minutes.

Add three-quarters of the apples and lightly sauté for another minute.

Add minced garlic and ginger, and stir briefly. Deglaze pan with red wine vinegar.

Add apple cider to pan and place on medium heat and reduce sauce by two thirds.

After chutney is at correct thickness reduce heat to low and add in the peppers, the remaining apples, orange segments and the honey and stir.

Add in the butter to glaze the sauce and the cilantro. Taste sauce and adjust with salt and pepper as needed.

For the protein:

• If you want to marinate some pork or chicken here is a quick recipe that would pair nicely with the chutney:
• 1 tbsp. dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp. garlic - minced
• 2 tbsp. cilantro - chopped
• 3 tbsp. white wine
• 3 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• ½ cup olive oil
• 2 tbsp. salt
• 1 tbsp. pepper

Blend all ingredients together and then place pork/chicken into marinade for minimum 2 hours or up to 8 hours.

Lightly coat the marinated meat with flour. Heat olive oil in a pan and then sear meat on each side for about 3-4 minutes or until cooked through.

Serve meat on a plate and top with the apple chutney.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine butter, sugars, eggs and vanilla; beat until well blended.  In separate medium bowl, combine dry ingredients and then add apples; mix well.  Add apple mixture to first mixture, stirring gently until just blended. Fold in nuts.  Do not over mix.  Pour into greased 13 x 9 inch baking pan and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool in pan on a wire rack.  Serve as a snack or dessert with low-fat ice cream.

Mix Apple mix into the Apple puree to make the apple cobbler mix.  Add 1-2 Tablespoons of Apple Cobbler to a parfait glass. Top with 2 Tablespoons of the almond crumble. Alternate until you end with 1 Tablespoon of the apple cobbler. Enjoy!

In a slow cooker, combine all but water and syrup. Mix the syrup with the water and pour over everything in the cooker. Cover and cook on low setting for 3-4 hours or on high for 1 1/2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Combine the dried cherries, pecans, ¼ cup brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.

Select an ovenproof skillet that measures 9 inches across the bottom and 11 to 12 inches across the top. (A cast-iron skillet works well and makes a home-style presentation.) Melt the butter in the skillet over medium heat, and then stir in the other ¼ cup of brown sugar and cherry preserves. When the mixture is bubbling evenly over the surface of the pan -- 30 seconds or so -- remove pan from the heat.

Do not peel the apples; the peels will help them to hold together. Halve them top to bottom, however, and core each half. (Tip: A melon baller does a good job.) Spoon some of the cherry-walnut mixture into each apple half, compacting it with a finger.

Quickly invert the stuffed apple halves and place them cut side down in the skillet. You should be able to get 6 or 7 around the outside and 1 in the center. Finely dice the remaining apple half, if left over, and scatter the pieces between the apples. Sprinkle the leftover cherry-nut mixture between the apples.

Between two sheets of waxed paper, converge and roll together both top and bottom pie crusts to form one 12-inch circle.  After removing the top sheet of waxed paper, invert the pastry over the apples, center it and peel off the other sheet of paper.  Lifting the edge of the pastry, either tuck the edge straight down along the inside of the pan or pinch it to crimp the edge. Poke two large vent holes in the pastry with a paring knife, twisting the knife to enlarge the holes slightly.

Lightly brush the pastry with the milk and sprinkle surface with sugar. Place the pie directly on the center oven rack and bake for 20 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees and bake until the top crust is golden brown, another 25 minutes.

Transfer the pie to a cooling rack and let cool for at least 30 minutes or to room temperature before serving.

Fry bacon until crisp, then drain off most of fat. Add maple syrup and brown sugar to pan, cook and stir until bacon is well coated with melted sugar. Remove from pan onto Silpat or parchment paper.

Combine remaining salad ingredients in a large bowl.

Whisk together dressing ingredients and toss with salad. Garnish with bacon.