Cranberry Apple Crisp

When my Farmer and I were first married I tasted a traditional dish on his family’s Thanksgiving buffet that took cranberries to new heights! I had only ever eaten cranberries in the form of a quivering cylindrical mass that provided moisture to an overly-dry turkey slice. This was different!

I have done some tweaking through the years to reduce the sugar and replaced the packet of instant oatmeal with rolled oats — much better!

This dish can stand on its own two feet and is fit for the dessert table at any Thanksgiving Feast! It’s fame has spread throughout my family and is now gracing the Thanksgiving table of many who have fallen in love with its tangy sweet flavor.

Stock up on cranberries this season and freeze in the bag so that you can enjoy this wholesomely delicious (and nutrient rich) dessert throughout the year!

You can also double your batch and save a pan in the freezer for Christmas! I have been known to a enjoy helping of this dish for breakfast with some plain or Greek yogurt for a delicious take on Thanksgiving leftovers!

This Thanksgiving will be different for my family, some of my family members, and many of my clients this year. We have discovered that there are certain foods that cause our body inflammatory symptoms (changes in mood, digestion, and even auto-immune conditions.) Instead of focusing on what we can’t have, we focus on the foods that are the most calming to our body — they leave us feeling full of energy, well-rested, and (frankly) happy on a digestive level!

LEAP friendly recipe modifications (for any with food sensitivities or allergies):

Sweeteners: You can use cane sugar/Sucanat, beet sugar, or maple sugar. I haven’t tried honey or maple syrup, but that would probably work as well if you add 1-2 teaspoons more flour/starch in the fruit base.

Starches: I either use tapioca starch or whole wheat pastry flour to thicken the fruit base, but feel free to substitute any type of LEAP Friendly flour or starch: potato, wheat, rye, spelt, etc. (you could even grind some rolled oats in a blender to make oat flour).

Can’t have oats, why not try quinoa flakes? I haven’t tried flaked barley or spelt or Kamut, but that might work as well.

Fruits: Can’t have cranberries – why not try raspberries or blueberries or blackberries? OR, you could use all apples in place of cranberries.

You could substitute pears or peaches for apples as well…

Nuts: Feel free to omit the nuts entirely if you have allergies or dislike nuts. Pecans and walnuts work well in here, but use your imagination for a complimentary flavor (pistachios? hazelnuts?)

Fats/Oils: In addition to butter or coconut oil, you could also try pecan oil, avocado oil, sunflower, or olive oil for the streusel topping in this recipe.

This is a versatile dish! You might have to play with the sweetener and flour ratios a bit if you change fruits, but the sky’s the limit!

Thankful!

This Thanksgiving I am very thankful for the healing that so many of my family members and clients have experienced as we have worked together on their personalized immune-calming diet based upon their MRT test results. Some of my clients and family members had given up hope of ever seeing a change in how they felt. It never ceases to bring joy and delight to me to hear them report drastic, and lasting, improvements. We have all learned on a very personal level just how true it is that “Food is Medicine!”

The Lord who fashioned and created our bodies so intricately has granted wisdom and knowledge to members of the scientific community who can help us find answers to the pain we experience in this world. I am proud and deeply grateful to be part of this healing process.

I hope that you and yours have a very happy Thanksgiving!

Here’s to Wholesome!

Bethany