Waste Not Want Not: An Alternative to Eating A Nasty Apple

I have achieved AARP status but can still hear my mother's stern reminder, "Chile!! Do not waste your food. Children are starving in other countries!!"

Feeding America reports millions of Americans live with "food insecurity," and "according to the USDA's latest Household Food Insecurity in the United States report, more than 38 million people in the United States experienced hunger in 2020. Sit with that number for a few minutes.

To this day, I cannot trash good food.  Good food meaning, it isn’t spoiled; you know, no sign of mold or bacteria setting in.

I bought a bag of Fuji apples, which are usually exceptionally sweet, but one bite into my apple prompted me to double-check the bag. The apple never disappoints, but on this day, it failed. For a moment, I thought I had purchased the wrong brand; but I did not. EatLikeNo one, Blogger, Eric calls it “apple letdown,” and that is exactly what I experienced. I was curious about the peak season for the apple, so I did some reading. 

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The Fuji apple originated in the 1930s in a research station in Japan but was not released to the public until 30 years later.  In 1980, the apple was finally released in the US.  That explains why I’d never heard of them during my childhood years.

According to Nutritionix, a medium-size Fuji apple contains: 

• Calories 121

• 0.3g Total fat   

• 1.9mg Sodium

• 209mg Potassium

• 29g grams Carbohydrates 

  • 4g Dietary Fiber

  • 22g grams Sugar

• 0.4g grams Protein

Anyways, Fuji apples are said to harvest late October; of course, depending on where the apple is grown, will also impact harvest season. But I know now, so it’s all good.

Instead of trashing the apples, I cooked them. Although I always cook apples, I am intensional about buying sweet ones to cook. A little cinnamon and nutmeg will always enhance the flavor of the worst-tasting apple.  

That’s what I did!

I peeled the apples, tossed them in a pot, added water. Then I let the apples cook down so I could stir them. After they cooked down, added cinnamon and nutmeg.  

Predictablly they turned out delicous!

My apples were transformed into a healthy dessert, snack, or breakfast option. 

I added the cooked apples to an Ezekiel English Muffin and topped it with Blueberries! Yummy!

Mother was right, people are starving in other countries, but also in the United States.  Don’t waste food. Do your best to salvage it.  Give it to someone else who might like it or search for a new recipe.  Perhaps you’ll find a new recipe!

Be well!