Moving On

I had so much fun apple picking a few weekends ago that I decided to take my kindergarteners. I had a trip to Linvilla already planned, but that was just to visit Pumpkinland and pick out a class pumpkin. However I quickly added the apple-picking. We all had a lot of fun. The day was absolutely beautiful, probably one of the last before the cold settles in. One thing I did have to explain to my bright bunch was how to look for good apples versus the ones with big, brown bruises and very obvious worm holes. They caught on quickly after that...

Finding the Perfect Apple for Your Pie
Crisp, juicy McIntosh. Fresh, tart Granny Smith. Smooth, mellow Golden Delicious. The tremendous variety of flavors, colors, and textures of apples make them a great favorite for snacking, baking, juicing, or saucing. But how do you choose which apple to use?
When making pies, choose an apple with good flavor and a firm texture that holds up well when baked. Find apples that are firm, with no blemishes or bruises, and that feel heavy for their size. To make one 9-inch pie you'll need about 8 or 9 medium-sized apples, or approximately 3 pounds.

Here is a starter list of some of the varieties of apples that make wonderful pies. Don't be afraid to experiment with the more exotic varieties available at farmers' markets. These apples sometimes have a shorter shelf life but the flavors can be quite enticing. Keep in mind that some of the best pies are made with a combination of apple varieties, so mix and match apple types to suit your taste.

Cortland: The Cortland is juicy and slightly tart. Works great in double-crust pies, cobblers, and crisps.

Golden Delicious: The Golden Delicious is sweet, with a rich, mellow flavor. An excellent all-around cooking apple.

Jonathan: The Jonathan is moderately tart, with a rich, slightly spicy apple flavor. Holds its shape well. Try in open-faced tarts and pies.

McIntosh: The juicy and crisp McIntosh tends to break down when cooked, so it's best suited for double-crust pies, cobblers, and crisps.

Rome Beauty: The Rome Beauty is one of the best baking apples. It is a richly flavored hard apple. Perfect for all kinds of baking.

Baldwin: The Baldwin is fairly tart apple that has just a touch of sweetness. A good all-purpose cooking apple.

Northern Spy: Firm and sweetly tart, the Northern Spy is especially suited for open-faced pies and tarts.

Granny Smith: One of the most popular apples used in baking and cooking. The Granny Smith is tart and crisp. Makes a good all-purpose cooking apple.

Winesap: The Winesap is very firm and aromatic, with a spicy bite. A great combination of tart and sweet flavors.

Jonagold: A blend of Jonathan and Golden Delicious apples, offering a unique tangy-sweet flavor. With a yellow-green base and a blush stripe, Jonagold is excellent both for eating fresh and for cooking.

Arkansas Black: A medium to large apple with a deep purplish color. Firm, coarse texture and good flavor. Good for sauce, pies and baking.

Ida Red: The much under-appreciated Ida is a cross of the Jonathan and Wagener varieties. Bright red with a distinctive tangy and tart Jonathan-like flavor, the Ida is bigger than the Jonathan and can be relied on to keep its shape during baking.

Empire: A red, medium sized McIntosh-type fruit. Firm-textured and slightly tart, the much underrated Empire is a fine all purpose apple good for sauce, pies, baking, salads, fresh eating and freezing.

Liberty: The Liberty is a small to medium sized McIntosh type also. It is tart with a coarse texture and red over green color. It is good for sauces, pies, baking and freezing.

Mutsu (Crispin): This large, yellow-green fruit is very juicy and has a mostly sweet flavor. It is great for fresh eating, salads, freezing, sauce, pies and baking.

Ozark Gold: The Ozark Gold is a large, yellow fruit resistant to russetting and fine for eating fresh, baking in pies and cakes and making sauce.

Spartan: Also a McIntosh type, the Spartan is a semi-firm, medium-sized, dark red fruit. It has an aromatic, fine flavor and is well suited to sauce, pies and baking as well as fresh eating.

York: Firm, crispy and juicy, the shiny red York (also known as York Imperial) has a winy flavor and firm texture that make it a good candidate for baking. This apple is medium to large sized and also great for eating fresh, as well as sauce and pies.

The following varieties are better suited for making applesauce or eating raw:

Fuji: The Fuji was developed by crossing the Japanese Mutsu (Crispin) with a California Winesap. Its spicy, crisp sweetness makes it excellent out of hand or as applesauce. Varies from yellow-green with red highlights to very red.

Gala: Has a similar shape to the Fuji, but a more polished look. Although the skin may be thicker and more leathery than that of the Fuji, the flesh is just as inviting. A crisp, sweet taste that can't be beat. Heart-shaped and medium sized, the Gala has a distinctive yellow-orange skin with red striping. Great for salads or as an 'out-of-hand' snack!

Braeburn: High impact flavor. The sweet, crisp, aromatic Braeburn blends sweetness and tartness just right for snacks and salads. Its color varies from greenish-gold with red sections to nearly solid red.

Red Delicious: America's favorite apple, right up there with baseball and hot dogs for all-American popularity. A five star snacking apple. Mild-flavored, sweet and juicy. Red Delicious has a deep ruby skin and a classic heart shape.

(from allrecipes.com)

After apple picking, we finally were able to visit the very much anticipated Pumpkinland. You may get the impression, from this picture, that I had to drag them there and that they had an awful time. However that is far from the truth, really, it is.