Contemplations on Apples and Winter Setting In

Just two weeks ago we were enjoying 60 degree days, and now we're looking at the prospect of snow. New England weather can be extremely fickle. Last year, we had no snow almost all the way through to Christmas, but it snowed at the last minute. This is particularly terrible because it is no less cold, it's just not pretty and you don't get any snow days. Aj and I did manage to make it to Mack's Apples this year to pick. Typically we go to a more local farm, but this one was only about 25 minutes away and had a lot of Honeycrisp apples, as well as a delicious hybrid called Jonagold.

Honeycrisp apples are my #1 "eating apple", and closely behind that are Jazz and Pink Lady. For baking, I haven't figured out my favorite yet. Jonagolds are supposed to be great for baking, but I found them to get soft a little too quickly in the oven. (Here's what Midwest Living says about Jonagolds:Jonagolds (left) are daughters of Jonathan and Golden Delicious, with the best of both worlds--firm flesh and a sweet-tart taste. ) Finding the right apple for what you are baking is imperative, because apples have very different tastes, consistencies, and abilities to hold up when heated. So every year is a process of elimination and trial/error.

We liked Mack's Apples a lot and also picked our own pumpkin there. Speaking of which, only a few days after picking the pumpkin we woke up and saw some smashed pumpkins in the street, and were very scared it was ours! But ours was safe on the porch. I don't know what hoodlum kids did it, but it's annoying! I think they belonged to the family down the street, who I am sure was disappointed that they didn't get to carve their pumpkins. I may try to carve ours tomorrow, which means pumpkin seeds! Yum.

We'll probably go back to Mack's Apples next year for another harvest. We picked 22 pounds of apples and hardly have any left. Aj keeps eating two a day! I wanted to use some of the apples to make a crisp, which I haven't done before. Typically I do a lot of fried apples (Southern thing) and baked apples, but this year I made a 5 pound apple crisp (five pounds of apples, that is)! I used a recipe from Ina Garten and it turned out very nice. I mixed the topping a little too long so it came out almost like an oatmeal cookie topping instead of a streusel type topping. I also had to do some substituting because I didn't have all the ingredients... Here is my messed-up but delicious version of the recipe!


Cookie Top Apple Crisp
Filling

• 5 lbs Jonagold or other baking apple
• 3 Tbsp. orange juice
• 3/4 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1/2 C. white granulated sugar
• 2 Tsp. cinnamon
• 1 Tsp. baking spice

Topping

• 1 1/2 C. flour
• 3/4 C. granulated sugar
• 3/4 C. packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 Tsp. salt
• 1 C. rolled oats
• 2 Sticks salted butter

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Peel core and cut the apples into wedges. Mix with the remaining filling ingredients and toss in a large bowl (I used a flexible baking sheet to help keep the apples from overflowing).
3. Place the apples into a 9x14 baking pan (I used glass, not greased).
4. Combine all of the ingredients in a mixer with the paddle attachment. Mix on 2 until the consistency of a cookie dough.
5. Crumble the dough topping into small bits across the entire top of the crumble.
   
6. Place on a baking sheet and bake 1 hour or until the top is brown and the apples are bubbly (I did 50 minutes but should have baked less - it all depends on your oven.)
   

Spring...Summer... AUTUMN!

Hmm. I just realized how odd the word Autumn looks. Well... That aside, autumn is my favorite season. In the South, I loved spring because it brought the dead world back to life, and the blooms were amazing and the weather was even better, but in New England, it's autumn that has stolen my heart.

New England autumn is absolutely stunning. With so many deciduous trees, and lots of rain, the colors in the fall are absolutely magical. From late September to October and slightly into November, the leaves catch fire in yellows and oranges and reds. But it's not even the trees that get me so excited. New England comes together as a community in the fall. There are pumpkin festivals and hot Yankee soups in fresh bread bowls and tours of cemeteries in Salem and best of all, there are apples. Autumn is apple harvest in New England, and I absolutely adore the U-Pick apple orchards all over the state. Every year since I've moved up here, Aj and I go to the orchards at least once or twice. We're learning the different types of apples. What's best for pies, baked apples, caramel apples, eating, storing through the winter.... It's a past time that a lot of people up here take for granted, but being from the outside I can see the pure magic of it. I can't wait to do all of these things with my children some day.



The trees haven't really started to change just yet, and the apple orchards will operate until late October, but I am already in the autumn mood. I can't help but think of hot spiced cider and caramel apples and pies. Yum! Here is a recipe that I think is good for fall nights. The original recipe called for ricotta cheese, but I substituted marscapone in a pinch. It's good either way.

Spaghetti with Sweet Potatoes and Marscapone

• 12 Oz. Spaghetti (about 3/4 box)
• 2 Tbsp. Olive oil
• 2 Small sweet potatoes, cubed into 1/2 inch pieces
• Sea/Kosher salt & cracked black pepper
• 2 Shallots, sliced thin
• 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/4 Cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/3 Cup marscapone or 1-2 dollops per plate

1. Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box. I like to cook mine a few minutes longer because I think Al Dente is Italian for "gross."
   
2. Reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking water before you drain the pasta.
3. Meanwhile in a large nonstick skillet, heat the oil over medium heat and add the potatoes, pepper and salt (to taste) and cook, covered, stirring every few minutes for 10 minutes.
4. Add the shallots and rosemary and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are tender about 3-5 minutes longer.
5. Toss the drained pasta with the potato mixture, Parmesan, and the reserved cooking water. Top with a dollop of marscapone.