Welcome to week 5 of Out on a Limb’s 2021 CSA. We hope you’ve had a good season. It has been a wild one for us as we’ve had our largest crop ever here on the farm. Although it’s been a bit back-breaking at times, we’ll miss it all as life slows down in the coming weeks.
One task that won’t end any time soon is our efforts to identify the apples we’ve received this season. We have boxes and bags piled in the basement waiting to be examined. I’ve been plugging away at id’s all fall and will continue that effort in the days and weeks ahead. It’s not as physically demanding as lugging bushels of apples, but it is hard work. Still, it’s incredibly gratifying to re-discover another long-lost Maine apple.
Over the years I have done most identification work using old books, notes and lists I’ve compiled. Most recently I’ve also been using the exciting new tool of DNA profiling. When I first heard about DNA testing of apples, my first reaction was part fear, part panic and part resignation. I’d been identifying apples the old fashioned way for decades and, although it was at times frustrating and difficult, I felt as though I’d made progress. Now I envisioned being replaced by an obscure chemical process I couldn’t begin to understand. Not only that, I was sure this new thing would expose every error I’d ever made.
I met Cameron Peace, one of the world’s leading experts in DNA apple profiling, at a conference in 2018. His research program at Washington State University (WSU) is designed to bring the benefits of natural diversity and the genomics age to fruit breeding. He uses genome-wide DNA profiling techniques to understand the inherited attributes and ancestry of fruit trees. One of his passions is reconstructing the family tree of all apple varieties. By the time his short presentation was over, I was hooked.
Since then, we’ve sent dozens of leaf samples from apples at the Maine Heritage Orchard to WSU for DNA profiling. From these we’ve learned new information about our collection, some of which relates to the apples in the CSA this fall. We’ve learned that some of our discoveries are synonyms for one another. Cherryfield and Benton Red, for example, are actually the same apple. We’re now calling them both Cherryfield. We learned that the parents of the wonderful Black Oxford are Blue Pearmain and Hunt Russet, two of the oldest New England varieties. We’ve learned—as we suspected—that there are at least two distinct strains of “Golden Russet” found in Maine. And yes, we have learned about a few botched ID’s I’ve made over the years. Over the course of the next few years MOFGA will test everything in the Maine Heritage Orchard. Although the process is expensive, we are raising the money where we can.
DNA extractions and their sophisticated computer programs produce results by making comparisons. If the DNA from 4 or 5 small leaves of an apple matches that from an apple in the database, bang, you’ve got an ID. But if that apple isn’t in the database, it is considered an “unique unknown” because there’s nothing with which to match. In this case it is up to the apple historian to determine the identity of the apples, such as Windham Russet and Gray Pearmain, that as yet have no match.
The apple historian-identifier and the apple DNA scientist-identifier are exploring the ways we can collaborate. Not only might technology facilitate the breeding of the apples of the future, it might also help us to reassemble the history of apples in Maine and throughout the world. We may be able determine who were the first Europeans to venture into the Gulf of Maine. Why are those odd apples on the islands? Were the Basques here fishing for whales and cod before Columbus? Let the apples tell the story! (by John Bunker)
Picks of the week:
(Click each variety for more info)
This has been a great apple year. Despite the early drought, months of monsoon and endless summer, the apples have adapted and thrived. Last year we had to dig deep to fill your shares with unusual varieties. This year we had to make hard choices about which apples to leave out. Happily we’ve been able to include some heirloom varieties that have never been in the CSA before from trees that are bearing well for the first time or finally produced enough for at least a taste. We hope that the final share of 2021 will be the climax of your apple journey - especially for those of you who gather family and friends around your share for a ritual tasting. In this time of social distancing, we love the thought that eating apples together can build community and keep the doctors away.
Back by popular demand is Maine’s biggest claim to apple fame, Black Oxford. We didn’t include it in the fifth CSA share last year, only in the storage apple mix, and boy was that an unpopular decision - lots of disappointed shareholders. So here you go. Eat them up fresh; put them in your pies and cider; make them into a rosy pink sauce. The flavors will develop the longer you wait so hold off using them til January, if you can; but you’re not likely to be disappointed with a Black Oxford whenever you slice it up. Ours got a bad case of sooty blotch at the end of this rainy summer. We apologize, but by now you’re probably getting used to it. Wipe them off with a wet cloth, and they will shine.
Your share includes another CSA favorite, Gray Pearmain. The only orchard in Maine that grows this unusual heirloom is The Apple Farm in Fairfield, and every year the Meyerhans are kind enough to save some for our shareholders. The name Pearmain has a long and confusing history, but as far as we can tell it has nothing to do with the taste of the apple. However, Gray Pearmain may be the exception to that since pear is exactly what this apple tastes like. And there is none of that grittiness that plagues many pears. Eat these fresh.
We are more than a little excited to offer Windham Russet for the first time. John discovered this rare, Massachusetts dessert apple growing on an old farm in Palermo. He topworked seven trees over to this variety, and this fall they were so loaded with fruit that the branches were bent to the ground. The russet skin is bumpier and more textured than the more familiar Golden Russet, and Hannafords wouldn’t dream of selling it. We say, “Bite in.”
Another newbie to the CSA is the multi-monikered variety Benton Red/Cherryfield/Collins/Salome. We have it growing under most of these names in our orchard; and since we now know that they are likely all the same variety, we suddenly have enough fruit to share it with you. John likes to keep a few bushels of Cherryfield in our root cellar every winter for making sauce. But you can also enjoy this all-purpose apple in pies and crisps, dried and in cider.
The final bag in your share has no label and has come to be referred to by the OOAL crew as the “Grab Bag”. It contains five very different apples that run the gamut of looks, tastes and uses. The picture below should help you identify which apple is which. While you could toss them all in a crisp, we think you will have more fun tasting them one by one. Hopefully they will give you some flavors to think about over the long, Maine winter and make you come back wanting more in 2022.
Our apples come to you straight from the tree, so, as with all fresh produce, please be sure to wash them thoroughly before eating. Some of the apples are grown using Integrated Pest Management by the orchards we collaborate with throughout Maine, and some are organically grown here on Super Chilly Farm.
Recipe of the Week
I don’t think I’m alone when I admit to becoming a NYT Cooking devotee during the last 18 months. Why spend hours trying to recall what recipe is in what cookbook when you can just type in the ingredients on hand, and voila, a recipe appears on your phone? If you too subscribe to the app, then you are likely familiar with the idea of sheet-pan dinners. These one-pan meals have saved me many an evening when after a long day in the orchard the only idea I’ve had for dinner was popcorn. The sheet-pan recipes NYT offers are all variations on a theme so it’s easy to mix and match ingredients and seasonings and come up with something delicious. Best of all there is only one pan to wash.
One of the recipes I tried last winter was Sheet-Pan Sausages with Caramelized Shallots and Apples. It sounded really good and easy so I followed the recipe as instructed without looking at the readers’ comments. That was a mistake since those readers clearly raised the alarm about burnt shallots and overcooked apples. Instead I got to find out for myself. So based on our collective experiences, I’ve reworked the recipe which I tried this week with much better results. I used three different CSA apples so I could compare them: Black Oxford held it’s texture and shape the best, but the flavor wasn’t at its peak; Stark got slightly softer and added a bright tartness to the dish; and Cherryfield got very soft, but not saucy, and contributed a more complex flavor than the other two. Really the mixture of apples turned out to be pretty terrific. Feel free to throw other vegetables into this mix: fennel, cabbage, thinly sliced potatoes, Brussels sprouts all could work.
I noticed this week that NYT posted a recipe for Sheet-Pan Chicken with Apple, Fennel and Onion. If you subscribe, you can access that recipe here. If not, read the recipe below, follow the basic technique, and substitute chicken thighs, onion and fennel for the sausage and shallots. Add the chicken on top of the uncooked apples, fennel and onion, toss with oil, throw on some rosemary, and bake them all together at 425 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Broil for a minute or two at the end to crisp up the skin.
The Sargent Crab Apple is a favorite winter feeding station for robins and cedar waxwings.
Sheet-Pan Sausages with Caramelized Shallots and Apples
Ingredients:
1 Tbs olive oil and a bit more
6 shallots (6 oz) - trimmed on both ends and peeled (or 1 large onion)
4 firm apples (original recipe called for 2 but it wasn’t enough)
kosher salt and black pepper
1 lb sweet or hot Italian sausages
3 sprigs of fresh rosemary
1 tsp whole-grain mustard
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
Chopped fresh parsley for serving (optional)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 425°. Line a sheet-pan with parchment paper.
Cut the shallots lengthwise into 1/2” thick wedges.
Core the apples, and cut them into 3/4” thick wedges.
Place the shallots and apples in a bowl, drizzle with 1 Tbs olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss til everything is coated. Set aside.
Place the sausages on the sheet-pan, and use a fork to prick some holes in them. Drizzle a bit of olive oil over them, and toss to coat.
Place the sheet pan in the oven.
After about 15 minutes, remove the pan from the oven and add the shallots, apples, rosemary and mustard. Toss everything with the juices released from the sausages. Return to the oven for 10-15 minutes more. Remove when the sausages are browned and 160° and the shallots are tender and caramelized. The apples should be tender but not mushy.
Transfer the sausages to a serving platter, and discard the rosemary sprigs. Pour the vinegar over the apples and the shallots, and toss well scraping up any browned bits stuck to the pan since we all know those are the tastiest parts.
Add the apples and shallots to the serving platter. Sprinkle with parsley. Serve right away.