AUTUMN APPLES

Autumn and apples seem inexorably linked.  The leaves turn yellow and gold and orange, the fruit ripens red on the trees.  There is something wonderful about eating an apple that's just been picked, from your backyard tree or by your neighborhood farmer.


It's worth looking out for locally grown, interesting apples.  Supermarkets and the nature of the food distribution business in the US have led to a year-round supply of apples, but only of a few varieties - the ones that store easily and have a fairly bland taste.  Branch out from Delicious and Galas, if you are able.  


We lived in apple country in England - it was easy to get ten different varieties at this time of year.   There were apples that were giant and gnarly and green - so tart and hard that they couldn't be eaten raw.  Cooked into tarts, pies, and crumbles, the flavor was incredible.  (Note to my British readers - there is no such thing as a cooking apple in America).  There were apples that were tiny but so sweet and juicy that the flavor exploded with each bite.  There are places in the States, too, that still grow a variety of apples.  In the Hudson Valley in New York, near my son's college, there are  roadside stands with incredible offerings.  Like with fine wines or cheeses, each apple offers unique taste and texture.  Here in Colorado, I turn once again to my favorite fruit growers at the farmer's market for Honeycrisps and Empires.


Apples and Health


The old saying about an apple a day keeping the doctor away turns out to have some merit.  I am troubled by the number of clients who come to see me and say they are going to 'lose weight' or 'be healthy' by staying away from carbohydrates, or by excluding grains and fruits.  Fruit, in general, offers incredible nutrition - fiber, antioxidants, minerals, vitamins - as well as delicious taste.  An apple has over 4 grams of fiber (quick summary of fiber benefits:  regulates blood sugar, lowers LDL levels, helps in weight loss by increasing sense of fullness, helps normalize many aspects of digestive function).  They're also very high in antioxidants (which help in reducing the aging effects of free radicals, as well as protecting from chronic degenerative conditions and possibly reducing risk of cancer).  Because of the high fiber content, apples are low on the glycemic index scale - they taste sweet, but don't force your body into a sudden insulin rush the way a soda or candy bar would.  There is research indicating that apples may lower the risk of lung disease and asthma, heart disease, cancer, colorectal disease, and high cholesterol.


Apple Abundance


Enough about health.  This time of year, I have lots of uses for apples.  We snack on them, just as they are, or sliced with a little cheese or nut butter.  I bake them into pies and crumbles and cakes.  And I preserve the harvest for use at a later time.


This year, the apple crop in Boulder suffered from late frosts in the spring - some of my favorite trees (at friend's houses, in parks or standing neglected outside of apartment buildings) have produced no fruit.  Our own crab apple tree suffered irrevocable damage a few years ago when when a black bear decided he wanted his meal 'to go'  - and took half the tree away for munching at a convenient time.  However, there are some hardy wild apple trees on our drive home, and I stop and pick them.  They're small - somewhere between the size of a crab apple and the supermarket variety - and very tart.  They're great for making apple sauces, apple jelly, apple butters, or apple chutneys.


I don't bother to slice them - just give them a quick wash and chop them roughly - seeds, core and all.  Everything goes into the pot and with some water.  I dig out jelly bags and my food mill from the back of my kitchen closet.  The fruit is loaded into the jelly bags (or, if I'm not too fussy, just a plain old strainer) to drain.   The juice is cooked up with some sugar and herbs to become mint or sage jelly.  The fruit is put into the food mill and used for applesauce, apple butter, apple curd, or apple cheese (the last is an English Victorian invention - fruit cooked for a long time with some sugar, until it is an extra thick butter - it stores well, and is great sliced and eaten with cold meats or cheese).


APPLE CRUMBLE


One of my husband's favorite deserts...


I have fond childhood memories of my grandmother peeling apples with a paring knife, and ending up with one long piece of peel.  It's a fun trick.  However, I no longer peel my apples.  The peel holds a much higher concentration of nutrients and the peels soften perfectly well when cooked.  Please - use organic apples if at all possible.  Also, if the apples are waxed (as supermarket apples often are) please wash them thoroughly.


Note to beginner bakers:  Apple crumble is a fairly easy desert to bake, as it doesn't need to rise.  The only technical piece is to 'rub in the butter.'  For newbies - this means exactly that.  I have my pile of flour.  I have butter which is COLD from the fridge (not, as in cake-making, at room temperature).  I cut the butter with a butter knife, into very small pieces, and toss them into the flour mix until the pieces are coated.  Then I rub - I take a small amount of the flour/butter mix between my thumb and my first two fingers, and gently mush.  The trick here is to have cold butter to start, and to not press too hard - you're breaking up the flour/butter into more uniform pieces, not kneading them together.  The end result should like coarse breadcrumbs (not fine sand).  It is better to have some bigger pieces - pea-sized - than to over-mix.


Note on slicing apples:  The best trick I have to getting even slices is to place the apple upright on the chopping board, and slice a large piece off just next to (but avoiding) the core.  Then give the fruit 1/4 turn, and slice again.  Repeat for all four 'sides' of the apple.  You then have a square core to discard, and four pieces which you can lay flat on the cutting board and cut into even slices.


Here's my recipe:


Preheat the oven to 400 (375 convection)


Make the crumble first:


1 C (5 oz) whole wheat pastry flour (or 1 C/4oz white flour)
1/2 C (2 oz) rolled oats (normal-sized - not giant)
8 T (4oz/1 stick) cold butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 C (2 oz) unrefined organic sugar (or light brown, or even white)
1/4 t cardamon seeds
1/4 t cinammon
1/4 t nutmeg
1/2 C (2 oz) chopped pecans or hazelnuts


Mix together the flour and oats.  Rub in the butter.  Add the sugar, spices, and nuts, and toss until well blended.
Put the crumble mix back into the fridge to cool while you prepare the fruit.


Fruit:


5 apples (about 1 1/2 lb) sliced 1/8" thick
1 orange - juice and peel
1/4 C (2 oz) organic raw or light brown sugar (optional)


Mix the apples with the orange juice, peel, and sugar (I often don't use the sugar, but if the apples are very tart it's a nice touch).  Pile into a small baking dish or pie plate (8" x 8" pyrex baking dish is perfect).
Pile the crumble on top of the fruit (don't press it in - just make sure it evenly covers the fruit).


Bake 25-35 minutes, until the fruit is soft and the crumble topping is golden brown.


Serve with yoghurt, ice cream, or whipped cream.


Variations:


This is a recipe with infinite possibilities.  I sometimes don't use the oats.  Occasionally, I omit the nuts. The nuts can be varied - almonds, hazelnuts and walnuts all work well.  I love the flavor of cardamon, but it can be omitted.  Play with the spices, or leave them out for an unadulterated fruit taste.  The fruit, too, can be varied.  Pears, or a mix of pears and apple, work well, as do some blackberries thrown in with the apples.  The summer peaches I placed in the freezer are used for a winter peach crumble.


I often make double the crumble recipe - placed in a plastic bag, the mix keeps well in the freezer.  It's a simple matter to slice up some fruit, top it with the frozen mix, and bake - an easy desert with no effort.


The smell of apples baking in the oven...soothing and lovely!