Easy Desserts to Make While Self-Quarantining

When it comes to desserts, making healthy choices can be tough. Here are a few delicious and (kind of) healthy desserts that you can enjoy at home with your family. The best part about these particular recipes is that they don’t take a ton a effort or call for a list of crazy ingredients.

Baked Apples Stuffed with Yumminess

8 medium to large apples (Honeycrisp, Empire, or Braeburn apples work great for this recipe)
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup chopped walnuts
½ cup dried unsweetened cranberries or raisins
2 tsp ground cinnamon                                                                                                                    
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/8 tsp finely ground sea salt
2 tbsp chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup + 3 tbsp water, divided

 1. Preheat oven to 350°F (176°C) degrees

 2. Wash and carefully core the apples with a paring knife. Scrape the bottom of the core out with a spoon, making sure that you don’t put a hole in the bottom of the apple.

FOR THE FILLING

 1. In a large mixing bowl combine the oats, walnuts, cranberries or raisins, cinnamon, vanilla, salt, vegan butter, and 3 tbsp (45 ml) of water. Use your hands to mix it together, pressing the butter into the oats until it becomes sticky.

 2. Put the apples in a deep baking dish and pour one cup of water in the pan. Liberally spoon the filling into the apples to the top and cover the pan with foil.

 3. Bake for approximately one hour, or until fork tender. Serve warm and top with vanilla ice-cream if desired.

3 Ingredient Banana-Busting Brownies

3 large bananas (about 1 1/2 cups mashed) very ripe will give the best flavor
1/2 cup cocoa powder unsweetened
1 1/2 cups raw almond butter crunchy, oil slightly drained
(optional) ¼ teaspoon cinnamon

 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare a 9-in. x 9-in. square baking dish by spraying it with cooking spray or rubbing coconut oil around the sides and bottom so the brownies do not stick.

 2. In a large bowl mash the bananas with a fork until smooth. Add the almond butter and mix until smooth. Add the cocoa powder and optional cinnamon and blend until no visible cocoa powder is seen.

 3. Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and bake for 20-25 minutes or until set and slightly dark on the top.  Remove from the oven and let cool completely before slicing.

Instant Pot Caramel Apple Pie Yum-Yum

For the Whole Wheat Coconut Oil Pie Crust 
(can substitute with any pie crust, graham cracker crust, or prebaked puff pastry)2 cups whole wheat pastry flour, can substitute white whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup coconut oil – scoopable, not liquid
5–6 tablespoons ice cold water

For the Caramel Apple Pie Filling

4 pounds honey crisp apples
1 1/2 cups whole dates
1 teaspoon cinnamon
4 tablespoons apple juice, divided
1 tablespoon cornstarch

For the Apple Butter Whipped Cream 

2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup apple butter
pinch of cinnamon
1–2 tablespoons maple syrup, optional for a sweeter cream

INSTRUCTIONS

 1. For the Whole Wheat Coconut Oil Pie Crust

 2. To the bowl of a food processor, add flour and salt.  Pulse a few times to combine.

 3. Next add scoops of coconut oil.  Pulse 5-6 times or until it resembles wet sand.  This could also be done with 2 knives or a pastry blender.

 4. Add 5 tablespoons of ice cold water and pulse 5-6 times until it starts to come together, adding an extra tablespoon of water if it’s too dry.  You should be able to press it with your hand and have the mixture stay together.  If it falls apart like sand, it needs an extra tablespoon of water.

 5. Scoop the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and shape it into a flat disc with your hands.

 6. Flour the top of the dough and use a rolling pin to shape the dough into a circle just wider than a 9 inch pie plate and about 1/8-inch thick.  Add extra flour to the bottom surface and top to prevent it from sticking while rolling it out.

 7. Roll the dough onto the rolling pin to transfer it to your pie plate.  Shape the edges as desired.  Use a fork to poke the bottom of the crust.

 8. Bake pie crust at 350° F for 20-25 minutes.  The crust won’t brown significantly, so when it feels crisp and dry to the touch, remove from oven.

 9. Let cool completely before filling.  Can store in a gallon sized ziplock once it’s cooled if not using the same day.

For the Caramel Apple Pie Filling

 1. Peel, core, and slice all the apples to about 1/4-inch thick.  I like to use an apple peeler to make this really fast.  Place apples in the pressure cooker pot and set aside

 2. Pit the dates and use kitchen shears or sharp, clean scissors to cut them into 6-8 pieces each.  You can also use a sharp knife but the shears make it a lot easier.

 3. Add dates to the pot of apples.

 4. Add cinnamon and 2 tablespoons of apple juice.  Toss everything to combine.

 5. Secure the lid and turn pressure release knob to a sealed position.  Cook at high pressure for 1 minute.

 6. While the apples are cooking, make the Apple Butter Whipped Cream (instructions below)

 7. When cooking is complete, use a quick release.

 8. Combine cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of apple juice.  Using the saute function of the pressure cooker, bring apples to a light simmer then stir in cornstarch slurry.

 9. Gently stir, just until mixture thickens, then immediately take off the heat to prevent the apples from overcooking.

 10. Pour the hot apples directly into the cooled pie crust.

Enjoy hot with a big dollop of Apple Butter Whipped Cream.

Can also be eaten at room temperature or chilled from the refrigerator.  Reheats perfectly in the microwave (for breakfast!).

For the Apple Butter Whipped Cream

Place apple butter, heavy cream, and cinnamon into a high speed blender and blend at medium speed, until thick.  Alternatively, use a bowl and a hand mixer.  Place in the refrigerator until ready to use.  Can be made up to 2 days in advance, although it becomes looser as it sits, which is actually amazing over the pie!

Easy as 1-2-3 Fruit Salad

1/2 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1/4 cup honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups strawberries cut in halves
4 tangerines separated into sections
3 cups pineapple chunks
3 kiwi peeled and sliced
2 cups blueberries
2 cups red grapes
mint optional

 1. Add the orange juice, orange zest, lemon juice, lemon zest, and honey to a saucepan and bring to a boil on medium heat, whisking for 3-4 minutes then turn off, add in the vanilla and let cool completely.

 2. Add the fruit to a large bowl and toss carefully with the sauce and refrigerate for at least two hours (you can also toss each fruit individually and line up the fruits in rainbow order then garnish the fruit salad with mint).

Easy-Peasy Peanut Butter Cookies

1 Cup Peanut Butter
1 Cup white sugar
1 egg

 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

 2. Mix peanut butter, sugar, and egg together in a bowl using an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Roll mixture into small balls and arrange on a baking sheet; flatten each with a fork, making a criss-cross pattern.

 3. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Cool cookies on the baking sheet for 2 minutes before moving to a plate.