Bottoms Up
Let’s talk apple anatomy. Set one of the apples in your share bag on the table. Most likely the stem is sticking up and those shriveled, tiny, leaf-like things called sepals are hidden beneath the apple. If this is the case, then the apple you are looking at is upside down. Pinch the stem between your fingers, and flip it so the stem is pointing down. This is how an apple grows on the tree. This might make more sense if you can imagine back to May when the apple tree was covered in flowers. Those flowers were attached to stems, and after pollination they shed their petals and developed into apples. The stems of flowers are at the base of the petals and sepals and so the stems of apples are also at the base. The indentation around the stem at the base of the apple is called the cavity. To add to the confusion the indentation at the apex or top of the apple is called the basin. If you flip through European apple guides, you’ll see that in all the images, the stem is shown pointing down. For some reason when the apple crossed the ocean to North America, it got turned upside down. We are certainly guilty of photographing all our apples on their heads, but for a brief moment we wanted to acknowledge the error of our ways and bow to the wisdom of those that ate apples before us. So just to practice this new nomenclature, we have used the “correct terms” when describing the apples in your share this week. See if you can follow along.
Picks of the week:
(Click each variety for more info)
We don’t think this has ever happened before in the 14 years of the CSA, but for the first time most all the apples in your share are considered dessert apples that are best for fresh eating. That’s not to say that they can’t be used in sauce or salads or salsa or scones; it’s just that their flavors are so outrageous it would be disappointing to cover them up with crusts and sugar. How did this happen? Well, as we ate our way through the orchard this past week, we found ourselves practically swooning over each new variety we tried. As the varied tastes exploded across our tongues, there were lots of sighs and cries of, “Oh wow, this is amazing,” emanating from the ladders. So we couldn’t help ourselves, and we wanted you to try them too. Only challenge was, there weren’t a lot of them - sometimes only enough to give you one apple of a variety. And they’re not as blemish-free as they usually are. Our hope is that having to cut out a small bug scar or bruise as you slice up the apple will be more than compensated for by the flavor kaleidoscope you’re about to experience.
Grab Bag Apples (clockwise from upper left): Ribston Pippin, Tumanga, Burgundy and Hudson’s Golden Gem
In your share bag you will find the old NH favorite - Nodhead, two Mac offspring - Spartan and Spencer, a NY giant - 20 Ounce, apple royalty - King of Tompkins County, and one unlabeled grab bag of mystery apples. You’re going to have to do a bit of sleuthing to figure out what’s what in the grab bag. The picture to the right will help you out. There should be 2-3 Ribston Pippin, 3-4 Burgundy, and 1 Hudson’s Golden Gem or 1 Tumanaga. The Ribston Pippin is heavily russeted around the cavity with vivid sunset red streaks and stripes running from the shoulder to the basin. Burgundy lives up to its name - a blotchy red over yellow that intensifies to a deep, opaque purple-rouge. If you are uncertain, cut the apple in half; Burgundy flesh is infused with pink. Hudson’s Golden Gem is an iconic conic - wider at the base than at the apex (think upside down ice cream cone). The yellow skin is dotted and streaked with russet. If you don’t find a Hudson’s Golden Gem in your bag then the remaining apple will be a Tumanga. Its shape is round and somewhat flat. It has a splash of russet around the stem, but not nearly as much as the Ribston. The yellow base color is obvious on most of the apples peeking through beneath a light red blush.
So we’re not going to tell you any more about these apples. You can read their back stories if you click the links; it is up to you to decide on their flavor profile. A word of caution to the shareholders who sit down and sample every apple at once. Take a break between varieties - eat a cracker, drink some water. The powerful aromas and flavors of these apples may wage war in your mouth if you bite into them in close succession. Each deserves to be tasted with some space around it. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do.
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
Tabbouleh with Apples, Walnuts and (maybe or maybe not)Pomegranates
After claiming that all the apples this week are best for fresh eating, it felt imperative that I come up with a recipe that would incorporate raw apples and feature their beauty as well as their flavor. This recipe should do the trick. At first I was put off by the call for pomegranates since I was under the impression that we didn’t get those in Maine markets until just before Thanksgiving. But I looked it up, and it seems that some places in the northern hemisphere have pomegranates available in October. If you are so lucky, grab one and break it apart. If not, substitute dried cranberries or just leave it out like I did. Seemed plenty delicious without any additional fruit. The other confounding thing about the original recipe by Michael Solomonov was that it didn’t include any grains. Doesn’t tabbouleh need bulgur or some type of grain? I looked that up too, and yes it does. So I added quinoa, since that’s what I had in the pantry, and made a few other tweaks (more apples, less parsley) that are given below. The OOAL crew plus one friend who stopped by at lunchtime gave it the thumbs up.
Ingredients:
Burgundy apples shine both inside and out in a salad or a salsa.
1 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed
1 cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
1/2 cup fresh pomegranate seeds or diced dried cranberries (optional)
2 cups flavorful dessert apples, cored and diced
1/2 cup red onion, diced
1 - 2 tsp smoked paprika or diced chipotle chile pepper
2 -3 Tbs honey
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup olive oil
coarse salt to taste
1 cup walnuts
Directions:
Add quinoa to 2 cups of boiling water. Bring to a boil, turn the heat down to simmer, and cook until all the water has been absorbed, 15-20 minutes. Cool to room temperature.
Mix together the parsley, pomegranate seeds/dried cranberries, apples and red onion in a medium bowl. Add the cooled quinoa and stir.
In a small bowl combine the chipotle pepper/ smoked paprika, honey, lemon juice, and olive oil. Whisk to emulsify, and stir into the quinoa and apple mixture. Taste and adjust seasonings to your liking. (You don’t need to use all the dressing that this recipe makes. Save it to use later on a salad.)
In a dry skillet toast the walnuts over medium heat. Keep watching them and stirring otherwise they will burn. Remove walnuts from the heat and stir with a pinch of salt. Crush them in a mortar and pestle or with the side of a knife til they are coarse pieces.
Serve the tabbouleh at room temperature. Stir in the crushed, toasted walnuts just before serving.