Monday, November 3, 2008

APPLES GALORE, AND WHAT I DID WITH THEM TODAY

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 Organic apples from a friend's backyard

It has been a great apple year and the other day a friend gave me a huge bagful of them. I just got around to dealing with most of them today and only have that bowlful left to use up before the week is out.


Of course, I made a pie-- a freeform type with a few raisins added.


And I froze some extra pie fillings:

Just pile each portion of filling in a foil-lined cake or pie pan, freeze it solid, and then take away the pans and pop the foil packages into plastic bags. This way, you have just the right amount and shape to fit into your pie crust.

According to The Perfect Pie by Susan G. Purdy:


"To bake, line a pie plate with a layer of thawed frozen pastry (or fresh--BCG), brush with... fruit preserves. Unwrap the frozen fruit packet (do not thaw) and set it in the pastry. Cut steam vents in the rolled-out top crust. Moisten the edges of the lower crust, then cover the pie with its top crust. Fold the edges of the top crust over the lower one and pinch to seal. Mold the edge into a raised rim and flute... (Note from BCG: If you like a shiny crust, brush it with soy or nut milk-- sprinkle with sugar if desired.)

Bake in the lower third of a preheated 425 degree F oven for 25 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350 degrees F, raise the pie to the center of the oven, and cover the pastry edges with a foil if they seem to be browning too fast. Continue baking for another 30 to 35 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown and the fruit tender. Serve warm for best texture and flavor."


Then I made two kinds of applesauce:

I made a smooth pink applesauce (see how I make this without having to peel, pit or core the apples on this blog post). I made it pink by adding 2 cups of crabapple sauce that I had in the freezer to the cooked, pureed apples. I just added a little unbleached sugar to taste-- it's tangier than usual with the crabapple. Very refreshing and pretty!

The second type is a chunky roasted applesauce. I don't really have a recipe for this, but here's what you do:


Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Clean and core the apples and cut into chunks no bigger than 1". I don't peel them, since they are organic-- just cut out any bad spots. Get a large shallow roasting pan (or pans) and fill the bottom with about 1/4" of water. Add a splash of lemon juice and a little unbleached sugar. Pile in the apples no more than 2" deep. Toss with the liquid. Cover the pan(s) with foil and cook for about 45 minutes. Remove the foil. Place under the broiler (about 1 foot below the broiler element) in order to cook down the remaining liquid and char the apples a little. Watch them! Printable Recipe


Remove from the oven and add brown sugar to taste-- not too much! Delicious! (See pictures of roasting process at this post.)


MORE APPLE RECIPES FROM THIS BLOG (Updated Nov. 1, 2015):
(See more here:
http://veganfeastkitchen.blogspot.ca/2009/10/using-up-fall-bounty-apples-and-pears.html )


Massaged Kale Salad w/ Red Cabbage, Apples, Pecans & Pomegranate Molasses Dressing
Oat Groats w/ Chanterelle Mushrooms & Apples in Creamy Wine Sauce
Crispy Marinated Tofu/Breast of Tofu with Apples & Onions in Creamy White Wine Sauce
Whole Grain Apple-Almond Cake

Rhubarb and Apple Crisp with Mint and Orange
Irish Apple Bread Pudding
Apple and Cranberry Oat Crisp
Sherried Autumnal Apple and Potato Stew


The Denman Is. Fall foliage on the road where we take our walks


Enjoy the fruits of Fall!



7 comments:

R.M. Jackson said...

Hi Bryanna!

I noticed that you used the phrase "organic apples", and I'm curious. Am I to understand that Americans/Canadians actually spray or otherwise tamper with fruit trees? :-O

My Jamaican mind can't seem to get around that idea... did I interpret that correctly?

Bryanna Clark Grogan said...

Ruth, yes, I'm afraid most fruit trees are sprayed in North America. There are more and more organic farmers now, though. These ones, of course, are just backyard apples and not sprayed by my friend.

Amey said...

oh yeah, I'm in the heart of apple production. It's crazy. I've made SO many jars of applesauce. And canned apple pie filling. Now what!? :) Lots of apples for breakfast. And probably another pie. Yum!

Anonymous said...

"Just pile each portion of filling in a foil-lined cake or pie pan, freeze it solid, and then take away the pans and pop the foil packages into plastic bags. This way, you have just the right amount and shape to fit into your pie crust."

OMG, that is pure genious! Thank you!

Zoe Winters said...

Wow! Your blog makes me super hungry! Thank-you for all the great ideas! I cant wait to make so many of these things! :)

Zoë x

Bliss Doubt said...

I love your blogspot. I've never cooked at home as much as I am now because of the wildly crashing economy, and it's been good to try recipes. Just making new recipes causes them to go into your memory somehow, and you shop better too, and suddenly your pantry and fridge are full of good ingredients instead of nachos and beer. Anyway, one thing: second time today I've seen the mushroom misspelled, s/b chanterelles. Thanks!

dgsquare said...

I made apple sauce for the past couple of years with our own apples, and I love it!
I'd like to share a couple of variations I tried and liked a lot.
One is with vanilla and a little sweetener, like agave syrup. It comes out almost like pudding, it's so good!
And the other one is with cranberries. I cook them a little with the pureed apples when I cook them again to make them hot for canning. Some cranberries burst, making the sauce pink with red streaks, and some stay whole looking like rubies in the sauce.
Really yummy too!
I used the champion juicer to strain the cooked apples and it was a breeze!
Thanks for the festival of apple recipes! Now is the time!
Daniela