September 26, 2005
Apples - Welcome Fall
Fall is my favorite season for many reasons! The changing of the leaves, the cooler climate, the crisp air in the morning, the harvest, the first donning of the fuzzy sweater, and that first fall apple, fresh off the tree, firm, crisp, tart, the leaves still attached!
This pretty thing was a particularly fine specimen of what fall means to me. The herald of the fine season still had the lush leaves.
So what can you do with all the apples of the season? The list could be as long as your wish. For there can be pies, jams, butters, crumbles, ciders, juices, salads, and more. Or you can just bite into one and savor the season!
The most common apple you can pick on a farm is a Mackintosh, incidentally my least favorite of apples. Mackintosh apples are really cooking apples and aren't great for raw consumption. With a white flesh that quickly browns upon exposure to air, and lacking the balance of sugar and acidity, it's an apple that brings forth its finest qualities when cooked and the sugars take over, making it an ideal candidate for pies, sauces, and other cooked dishes. Cortlands, which look a lot like Mackintosh apples, but are larger and have less red on them, are perfect for cooking as well, but they're also incredible for eating - firm, crisp flesh that perfectly balances tart and sweet!
I won't delve into just how many different types of apples are out there (because there are lots!) and what they're best used for, because if you like apples, you'll do a little digging on your own, and few things are as exciting than discovering a new version of something you love.
If you do live near a farm that has an apple orchard, do yourself a favor. Take a Saturday or a Sunday and go apple-picking! The experience will be relaxing and exciting all at once and in your own special way, you'll open the door to fall!
Comments
You know what though? The mackintosh is the one you miss away from NY. I hate the skin but I do love eating them out of hand because they are easy and laid back but also very malleable and juicy. It's an apple that really needs a serious frost, which the North West lacks.
I live the way upstate NY smells when apples in season. I always inspires me to make pie.
Can you tell me if Mackintosh apples would ever have red dye added to the skins? Apples sent from Wisconsin to my friend had no red in the cooked flesh,while some purchased from Safeway had red bleeding through the skin edges. When my friend scrubbed one of the Safeway apples, there appeared to be quite a bit less red bleeding in the flesh. Obviously she felt the Safeway apples had been dyed. If it is o.k. to add red dye to the apples where can I get this information? Thank you for any assistance you can give us. LouRene
I have a mackintosh tree and I would like to know when I should pick them.
regards,Diane.
Wow... my sentiments exactly, but put so much better! SassyRadish, if you know of a farm not to far from NYC where one can go apple-picking, please, please share.
xT