Early fall apples
{sweet, tart, dense, juicy}
When apples start overflowing the tables of my favorite farmer’s market vendors, I know that fall has truly arrived. With skins ranging from bright green to blushing pink and deep red and a winy fragrance, these welcome additions to the cooler weather produce array inspire many ideas for the cook and the pastry chef alike. At this time of year to celebrate the arrival of truly in-season apples (not the ones in cold storage for months), I reliably turn to making chicken with Calvados garnished with apples in a creamy apple cider sauce, warm apple cobbler and freshly made rustic applesauce. From the tiny Crimson Gold variety (a cross between a lady apple and a crab apple) to the fragrant Orin with its hints of pineapple flavor, to sweet Galas and Braeburns, tart Gravensteins, Greenings and Granny Smiths, apples, those oldest and most widely cultivated fruits, are not just apples. Each variety has its singular pleasures and best uses, but for applesauce, I like to mix it up a bit and use several kinds to offer a complex and well-balanced flavor profile. And since the skins, cores and seeds offer flavor and some color, I wash the whole fruits well, quarter them and cook them on low heat in a heavy pot with just a thin layer of water at the bottom to prevent burning. And don’t forget to put a lid on it to seal in all of the fruits’ flavor. When almost disintegrating, simply process the whole pot’s worth in a food mill. Taste and add sugar and spice if you’d like (I like mine unadulterated), grab a bowl and a spoon and serve it out hot, warm or chilled with a generous pour of fresh cold heavy cream, maple syrup (or honey) and homemade ricotta. What layered pleasure can be derived from something so simple!
