This year’s apple harvest is shaping up to be a great one and this week’s recipe, Carrot & Apple Yogurt Salad, uses a combination of ingredients that can be found at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market.
Start with a tender, juicy McIntosh, a popular classic since 1911, mixed into some plain Greek yogurt (available at the Saturday market), add early carrots and local honey for this late summer treat. It makes an excellent afterschool snack for kids of any age.
Speaking of kids, don’t miss the opportunity to take them apple picking. It’s a great way to expose them to agriculture right in our own backyards. Teaching your kids about where their food comes from is important in a time when only one percent of people live on farms. A trip to the apple orchard to pick their favorite apple or discover a new apple variety can be a lasting memory and develop a fall tradition.
The old adage, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away” definitely holds up and is supported by research. Apples are a top food source of the mineral boron, important for children’s growing bones (adult bones too), one apple provides 20% of the daily recommended fiber intake, phytochemicals in apples are being studied for their role cancer prevention, plus eating raw apples will keep your kids teeth healthy. So an apple a day can also keep the dentist away.
Younger children will be more likely to eat apples that are sliced. They’re not so intimidating that way. A Cornell University study done in schools found that kids were 61% more likely to eat their apple if it was sliced.
Today’s recipe is from the “Farmers’ Market Favorite Recipes” cookbook available at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market, Cornell Cooperative Extension office in Ballston Spa, and other locations. The cookbook can also be ordered online at www.ccesaratoga.org.
Carrot & Apple Yogurt Salad
1 ½ cups plain Greek yogurt*
2 tablespoons honey*
3 medium apples*, grated (2 cups)
1 pound carrots*, grated (3 cups)
¼ cup raisins
½ cup slivered almonds, toasted
Measure Greek yogurt into a glass bowl and stir in honey. Grate apples and add immediately into yogurt to prevent browning.
Grate carrots and stir into yogurt along with raisins.
To toast almonds heat a skillet to medium heat, add almonds to dry skillet and stir until lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle toasted almonds onto salad when serving.
Serve cold.
Optional variation: Grate one small zucchini with skin and mix into salad for added color. Substitute sunflower seeds for almonds.
Makes 8 servings.
Per Serving: 130 calories; 4 g fat (0.5 g sat); 0 mg cholesterol; 21 g carbohydrate; 4 g protein; 3 g fiber; 55 mg sodium. Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin A (120% daily value).
Ingredients marked with an asterisk (*) are available at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market on High Rock Avenue. The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is open on Wednesdays from 3-6 pm and Saturdays from 9-1 pm. For information about food and nutrition contact Diane Whitten at Cornell Cooperative Extension at 885-8995or dwhitten@cornell.edu.
