What to do with the Apple Harvest

A sweet or bitter fruit, the apple indeed was mentioned in very early times in the Bible and the tree is believed to have been  one of the first to be grown. They are traditionally picked in late autumn but they are grown throughout the year somewhere in the world nowadays. .

Apples were brought to America by colonists in the 17th century as the only native apples were crab apples.There are now many varieties of apples and apple products.

With so many apples we decided to freeze some in slices. This is how we did it.

I had some help from my husband in the peeling. He peeled; I sliced. We then sprinkled them in lemon juice and put them on flat trays. We "open-froze" them for about 45 minutes and then quickly transferred them to foil dishes and returned them to the freezer.

These can be used at a later date for sauces, pies, crumbles etc.

1lb  cooking apples , peeled, cored and chopped

zest of 1 lemon,

2 tbsp water

8 ozs butter

1 tsp sugar 

Put apples, zest and water in a pan and soften . Add sugar and butter and blend until smooth.

Place in warm, sterilised jars. Seal with waxed discs and put the lid on .   

1lb apples  peeled and chopped

1lb marrow peeled and chopped

1lb onions

2 in chopped  fresh ginger

1pt vinegar

8 oz caster sugar

salt and spices to taste

Place all the ingredients in a pan and bring to the boil.

Turn the heat down and simmer slowly until all the vinegar has been absorbed.

Place in warm sterilised jars. Put waxed discs on and seal the lid tightly. Store in a dark place for about 4 weeks.

I still have plenty apples and will be adding recipes over the weeks.

This is a very old English favourite. My friend used her apple harvest to make these beautiful crumbles.

2 lbs peeled, sliced apples

4ozs caster sugar

8 ozs flour

4 ozs butter

4 ozs sugar

2 tsp cinnamon powder

a sprinkle of brown sugar

Place the sliced apples into an ovenproof dish and sprinkle with sugar.

Rub the flour and butter together until they look like breadcrumbs .

Stir in the sugar and cinnamon.

Put the mixture on top of the apples. Sprinkle with crunchy brown sugar.

Bake in the oven on about 180C for about 30 minutes until golden brown.

This is a recipe by Irish TV chef, Rachel Allan, my favourite Irish chef . I have adapted it to work with Apples

My favourite of all the Irish Apple Cake recipes is this one from County Kerry.

My favourite; Kerry Apple Cake

I have two more uses for the apple harvest. The soaking wet summer and autumn here in UK has produced a fine apple harvest . 

I have made Spicy Parsnip and Apple soup today. Here's how 

Ingredients 

2 large apples peeled and chopped 

3 large parsnips peeled and chopped 

1 carrot peeled and chopped 

1 onion peeled and chopped 

salt and pepper 

1 tbs spoon of curry paste

Method 

Boil up all the ingredients until soft then add the apple pieces .

Blend it together until smooth

add a swirl of cream (optional ) . 

This was a treat. 

Norton Priory Cheshire held its annual apple and quince day and visitors were invited to bring their apples along and have them juiced free of charge.

I took several pounds of apples along and they were juiced for us to take home in containers. Apple juice at its freshest with no additives. Liquid apple. 

https://wizzley.com/norton-priory-west-cheshire/