An apple a day…
…Is a good thing isn’t it? It’s a great fruit, delicious and healthy, crisp and juicy…but it’s not just one apple a day. Not even just one each for every member of the family a day. Those of you blessed as we are with apple trees must be used to this annual abundance and you’ll understand the change it has brought to each day’s first garden vista!
Outside each morning on the lawn there’s a new scattering of happily ripened cookers accompanied by a few creature-infested or completely rotten ones too. If they’re not quickly gathered up there’s soon a new lawn decoration; hocky-stick-smashed, tennis-racket-mashed or sword-slashed apple pieces as the boys get hold of them.
There was a time – before we had an apple tree – when my family were thrilled by Apple Crumble; a little apple and cinnamon with porridge helped it go down and Continental Apple Cake was greeted with delighted cries of ‘CAKE!’ from even the smallest of our clan…but I don’t think I’m the only one feeling a little weary of my limited apple repertoire.
So my plan is to enlist your help!
Would you share your favourite apple recipes with me here on our family blog?
I guess you’ll have to copy and paste them into the little comments box, or if you have my email, email them to me and then I’ll post them up with appropriate credits (!) and give feedback on how they went down with my little troop.
I suspect that there are quite a few of you who may be dissapearing under the ever-rising apple tide and perhaps we’ll all be able to benefit each other with our recipes and see the harvest through with joy and generosity.
All recipes received with thanks in advance and tingling tastebuds!
10 Comments
This is mine and Ben’s favourite cake recipe:
Sally Edwards’ mother’s Somerset apple cake
6 oz sultanas
5 fl oz dry cider
8 oz unrefined caster sugar
6 oz butter
2 eggs
10 oz plain flour
1½ t baking powder
1 t cinnamon
Zest of 1 lemon
2 large Bramley apples
Soak the sultanas overnight in the cider.
Heat the oven to 160°C.
Cream butter and sugar tog thoroughly. Add eggs one at a time, beating as you go. Fold in dry ingredients, lemon zest and thinly sliced apples. Add sultanas and any remaining cider. Bake in greased, lined 8 inch springform tin (or rectangular one) 45 – 60 min or until skewer comes out clean.
Cool in tin and remove to rack.
I have pasted some apple recipes into a Word doc for you – send me your email address and I’ll send it on.
xxx
I’m looking forward to tasting this. Am slowly getting through the wonderful selection of recipies you’ve sent me…Thank you! xx
The following recipe is one that Myra used and comes from a TV Chef, his series is entitled the k.t.c.h.en D.a.r.es ( I entered his name and the screen immediately came up with The Publishers name , price etc).
Elderberries and Apples for Breakfast
Sharp Apples: 1.2kgs Elderberries ; 4 heaped Tablespoons Caster Sugar 80g
Peel the apples core them and chop into small pieces. Put them in a heavy based saucepan with the sugar (do not add water , makes them slushy) Leave to simmer over a low to moderate heatstirring occasionallyso they do not stick, until the apples have colapsed. Stir in the elerberriesand leave to cook, with the occasinal stir for a minute or two, till the mixture is is soft and fluffy. Try not to stir too much otherwise you will crush the elderberries. Serve warm or thoroughly chilled, enough for six with yoghurt.
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Danish prune and apple cake
http://www.cookingchanneltv.com/recipes/clarissa-dickson-wright-and-jennifer-paterson/danish-apple-and-prune-cake.html
for the batter:
140g/5 oz butter
200g/7 oz caster sugar
2 eggs, well beaten
85g/3 oz SR flour
115g/4 oz ground almonds
125ml/4 fl oz milk
1 t vanilla essence
1 T boiling water
½ t baking powder
further ingredients:
8 stoned prunes, chopped
115g/4 oz shelled walnuts, finely
chopped and mixed with 2 T sugar
2 green apples, cored and sliced
3 T sugar
ground cinnamon
butter
Cream all batter ingredients in a food processor for 10 seconds, scrape then process 5 seconds more. Pour into well-buttered 25cm/10” cake tin.
Place prunes on batter. Spoon over walnut and sugar mix. Arrange apple slices on top of walnuts. Bake in preheated oven at 190°C for 45 min.
Sprinkle surface with sugar and cinnamon. Dot with butter and bake for a further 20-25 min until skewer comes out clean. Cool in tin.
We tried this delicious cake last week…absolutely yummy and really easy. I didn’t have any walnuts so I used Pecans instead and it seemed to work just fine. Hope to get the photo up in the rotation…
Making it now — mine just went in the oven! Discovered too late we also didn’t have any walnuts, so just used extra almonds. Fingers x’d…am already hungry and 45 mins + another 25 post sugar topping is a LONG time to wait!! 🙂
Hope it works out well…the aroma whilst cooking was tantalising…don’t forget to put the nuts of butter on the topping bit too – I did – and I think that’s why it looked a bit erm well, overcooked!
Let me know how it worked out! xx
Marrow and apple chutney
via Caroline’s sister-in-law Bridget
4 lb marrow, peeled and chopped
3 oz salt
2 lb cooking apples, peeled, cored and finely chopped
1 lb shallots, skinned and chopped
1 lb dark brown soft sugar
2 pts distilled vinegar
1 t ground ginger
½ oz pickling spice
Layer marrow with salt and leave overnight. Rinse and drain and put in pan with apples, shallots, sugar, vinegar and spice tied in muslin. Stir over gentle heat until sugar dissolves, then boil gently but steadily, uncovered, for about 2 hours, stirring from time to time, until thick with no excess liquid.
Well this was my first attempt at Chutney. My parents had given us a 4 lb marrow, so it seemd the perfect opportunity to make it. John and I think it’s good – I’m not a big chutney consumer – but our Joshua still prefers the Branston!
Was very easy to do…I should have cut the marrow up smaller, but otherwise I think it has worked out quite well…picture on the rotation of it ready to cook and completed in unlabled jars!
Thanks Caroline
xx
Thank you Anna Braithwaite for this Nigella Apple and Cinnamon Muffin
recipe. I have yet to taste it, but will post when we have sampled…
http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/apple-cinnamon-muffins-2756
I do notice the recipe is a little different so will give details of the one we try later.