♥Hi Friends!

Grandma and Grandpa Peterson have hands down the best garden ever!!!  I’m not sure if that’s because they are very particular about the quality and taste of what they grow and they’ve been doing it since the dawn of time.  Or because one of the biggest reasons they grow their garden each year, spending hours tending it, weeding it, watering it, and harvesting it, as well as canning much of it, is to share it with their family and neighbors.  We as their children, and now grandchildren and great grandchildren, have and are recipients of their bountiful harvest, and more importantly love.  And love always makes everything taste better!

Enter, their apples.  Over 40 years ago (not sure exactly but my “soon-to-be-next-month” 50 year old husband use to climb it) they planted a Golden Deicious apple tree in there back yard.  Not long after, Great Grandpa Anderson (my mother-in-law’s father) grafted in two branches from a Strawberry Delicious he had in his front yard.  The result is a hearty, abundant producing, awesome climbing, 2 variety apple tree!  They are the best tasting apples ever!  (I’m pretty sure it’s because of the love from two generations from our family tree!).  Right this moment I have two boxes in my downstairs refrigerator that have recently been supplying all the apples for our daily smoothies.  As well as the apple I send with my Honey to work and my “last-two-remaining-at-home” kids to school,

What’s so great about apples?  What is the power in that old adage “An apple a day keeps the doctor away”?  They are so common place I think we hardly ever stop to think about the HEALING benefits the apple holds.  (Let’s stop taking these beauties for granted people!).  Here’s a few of my favorite:

1♥  One large apple provides a decent amount of the recommended daily amount of fiber we need (about 1/5 for women and 1/6 for men).  Among many of it’s perks, fiber helps us feel full and makes things come out a lot better (think poop!)  Click here to read about the many benefits of adding enough fiber to your diet.  Holy cow it’s a big deal! Seriously!!!

2♥  They are a HEALTHY, nutritious and inexpensive alternative to our favorite candy and can curb a sweet tooth on the spot.  Fruit is Mother Nature’s candy! 

3♥  I really like peanut butter, and apple slices with a generous amount of organic peanut butter is one of my favorite ways to get a dose of daily HEALTHY fat in.  Ha! Deeeeeelish!!!

But really, peanut butter aside, click here and here to read about some of the other benefits of why we should be eating “an apple a day”.  And, I’m hoping to work out a cake/muffin recipe for next week showcasing these wonders.  So stay tune!  Hopefully!

♥Love you!

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I’ve been taking this salad to a lot of family gatherings lately.  It’s so easy, with hardly any prep time.  And with Romaine, apples, raw pecans, red onion, and the ingredients in the vinaigrette, it is a powerhouse of nutrients and good fats! Hooray!

APPLE PECAN SALAD WITH SWEET VINAIGRETTE

• 1 head of Romaine lettuce, chopped
• 2 sweet apples, cubes
• 1 cup raw pecans
• red onion, thinly sliced, to taste
• organic feta, crumbled, to taste (I buy a goat and sheep milk feta from Natural Grocers.)

Place ingredients in salad bowl and toss with ‘SWEET VINAIGRETTE’.

SWEET VINAIGRETTE

• 1/2 cup avocado oil
• 1/4 cup filtered raw apple cider vinegar (I like ‘Spectrum’.)
• 1/4 cup raw agave nectar
• 2 Tbsp dehydrated minced onion
• 1 1/2 tsp ‘Real Salt’ or 3/4 tsp of sea salt
• 1/4 tsp dry mustard
• 1/4 tsp tarragon
• 1/8 tsp garlic powder

Whisk ingredients together and let sit for at least an hour before using.