Last Sunday was one of those seldom days that we actually spent outside from morning until evening – just the three of us together in the cold but colorful autumn weather. We were invited by a friend to pick apples from her apple tree. The branches were hanging heavy from all the fruit and the ground was covered with fallen apples. We filled the trunk of a borrowed car with 2 boxes and 2 bags of sweet and slightly tangy fruit and drove to a farm that specialized in juicing apples. We had such a lovely afternoon on that farm. Eating lunch, walking in their garden and playing with their swings. Elsa fed the farm animals while we waited in line to get our apples juiced.
”Honk if you want to juice”
The sound from the juice machine was pounding, but luckily drowned under the tones of Chopin that was being played on maximum volume – spreading outside the small juicing shack and out through the forest.
We came home with 10 large bottles of delicious pure apple juice. After having filled our fridge, freezer and tummies with juice, we gave a few bottles to family and friends. But since we still had some left, we boiled it down to an apple syrup that is fantastic to sweeten all kind of desserts and breakfasts with. Simply boil down your apple juice in a large pot until only 1/3 of it remains. When it cools down it thickens into a syrup. Pour into in an airtight container and use within a few weeks.
We saved a few apples to cook with, so we have enjoyed both savory and sweet apple dishes during this week. One favorite recipe that we came up with was these scones inspired apple & oat biscuits. They are whipped together in a whizz. And after a few tries we actually managed to make them both gluten free and vegan, so they don’t feel as heavy on the stomach as biscuits/scones sometimes do. Although slightly more compact than a classic flour biscuit, they still have a light texture and wonderful flavor from the shredded apples, almond butter and oat flour. As always with these kind of baked goods you need to remove them from the oven in just the right time – it only takes a moment for a perfectly baked biscuit to become too dry. And the experience will be a whole lot less fantastic.
Vegan & Gluten-free Apple & Oat Biscuits
Makes around 8 biscuits
Dry ingredients
1 3/4 cup (200 g) gluten free oat flour (make your own by grinding rolled oats in a food processor)
1 1/4 cup (150 g) buckwheat flour (if not gluten intolerant you can use spelt flour instead.
3 tsp arrow root or corn starch
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sea salt
Wet ingredients
6 tbsp (75 g) extra virgin coconut oil, room temperature
4 tbsp almond butter
1 cup plain soy yogurt (or yogurt of your choice)
2 apples, shredded with peels on (around 1 1/2 cup apple shreds)
Place a baking sheet in the oven and preheat it to 450°F (230°C). Mix together the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Cut the coconut oil into small cubes and add to the flour mixture together with the almond butter. Use your hands to combine until everything has a pebbled texture. Add soy yogurt and apples and stir around with a wooden spoon until you can work the dough by hand. It can be slightly crumbly but should come together as you kneed it. If it feels too dry you can add a dash more yogurt, and if too wet – more flour. Gather the dough into a ball that you flatten out on a floured surface. It should be around 1 inch thick. Use a biscuit cutter or 3-inch (8 cm) wide glass to cut out as many biscuits as you can. Gather the rest of the dough into a ball again, flatten it out and cut out the rest of the biscuits. Cover the hot baking sheet with parchment paper and place the biscuits on it. Bake in the oven for 15–16 minutes or until crusty on the outside and slightly moist on the inside. Slab some fruit compote or homemade marmalade between two halves and eat while still hot. Nothing tastes like freshly baked.
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