Did You Know? The apples from the very first
McIntosh Apple tree—grown here in my own neck of the woods in the Ottawa Valley
about 200 years ago—took a major bite out of the apple market in the early
1900s. Rumour has it, John McIntosh, the son of Scottish
immigrants discovered an overgrown orchard on his property near Ottawa and
transplanted 20 of the healthiest seedlings to new ground. Only one tree
survived and the apples from this singleton drew the praises from his admiring
neighbours. With a stubborn entrepreneurial spirit and the drive to capitalize
on his find, McIntosh learned how to successfully duplicate the apple of his
eye. At first, apple growers did not want to grow the “Mac” because it was
susceptible to pests and disease. By the early 1900’s, however, as spraying
techniques were more widely used, the little McIntosh became more virulent and
very popular among apple growers and consumers alike.
I grew up eating oodles of Cortland apples from my
Aunt Bunny’s apple orchard in the south end of Ottawa. Stacks of bushel baskets
filled with apples—covered with heavy woolen blankets—lined the inner back wall
of our garage from the Fall through the Winter. Apple crisp, apple pie, apple
sauce and apples-in-the-raw became the go-to desserts for lunch and dinner for
our large family. To this day, I love biting into a fresh apple and savouring my
childhood memories of crisp, sunny days in early October at my Aunt’s orchard. Why not liven up your thanksgiving dinner with a few of the following apple-inspired recipes!
Apple Stuffing for Turkey or Pork Tenderloin
8 to 10 cups stale
bread cubes (see my breadmaker posts to make your own bread!)
*NOTE: if you prefer a dry stuffing, you may toast the cubes in the
oven first. Toast at 400F until golden brown.
½ cup butter
2 onions, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup apple, peeled
and chopped (Granny Smith or very firm tart apple)
1 tsp dried sage
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 cup parsley,
chopped
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
½ to 1 cup chicken
broth
Place bread cubes
(Toasted or untoasted) in a large bowl and set aside.
Melt butter in a large
fry pan. When butter is melted and looking a bit frothy, add onions and celery and cook over medium
heat until tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add apple and seasonings
and mix well. Let cool. Stir into bread cubes in the large bowl and mix well.
Add broth a little at a time to make a lightly moist stuffing. It should be moist
but not packed.
Tip: To make stuffing
the removal of the stuffing from the cooked turkey just a little easier, I the
sew a little cheesecloth pouch and place it inside the turkey cavity.
Then spoon the stuffing into the pouch inside the turkey and tie shut. When the
turkey is cooked, simply pull the bag out of the turkey. Voila, no worries of errant
stuffing lurking in the turkey cavity!
Baking the stuffing in a separate dish?
If you will be baking
the stuffing in separate dish and not in the turkey cavity, you may also wish
to add a beaten egg after you add the bread cubes to the cooked mixture. This will make it a little
more moist. Suit yourself! If baking in a separate dish, butter or grease a
shallow baking dish and spread stuffing evenly in the dish. Bake at 350F for about 25-35 minutes . When a
light crust has formed on the top of the stuffing, it is heated through and
ready to serve.
Option:
Adding a chopped chizoro
sausage to the mixture gives the stuffing a bit more zip!
Apple Cream Sauce for Pork Roast or Turkey
This is a terrific
sauce to accompany a pork roast or turkey.
2 tbsp butter
2 very tart, firm
apples – peeled, then quartered and sliced very thinly
1 medium sized Vidalia
or mild onion, finely diced
1 cup apple cider or
apple juice
1 cup chicken broth
¾ cup whipping cream
1 tbsp grainy mustard
or Dijon mustard
1 tsp cornstarch
Once the roast is
cooked, skim off the fat from the pan juices. Note: At this point, you may set
aside the pan juices and refrigerate (or freeze) to make the sauce at another
time.
To make the sauce
after cooking the roast, you may transfer the juices to a frypan (be sure to
scrape in all the brown bits) OR you may
leave the pan juices in roasting pan and place the pan over a burner to make
the sauce. Add the butter to the pan juices and melt over medium heat. Fry the
apples and onion and stir often, for about 6 minutes. Add cider or juice and
bring to a boil. Be sure to scrape in the brown bits for extra flavour! Stir in
broth, cream and mustard. Boil gently and stir frequently until reduced by
50%--about 9 minutes.
Stir 1 tsp cornstarch
with 1 tbsp cold water or place them together in a small lidded jar and shake
vigorously to mix, as if you are James Bond making a martini for Ms Ticklefinger. Whisk mixture into sauce and whisk frequently until
thickened.
NOTE; This sauce may
also be tossed with pasta and served with sliced, cooked sausage and grated sharp cheddar
for a tasty elegant dinner for two! Light the candles and talk about the Apple Crisp Cheesecake you made the night before...see recipe below.
Maple, Apple and Stilton Cheese Salad
(The beauty of
this recipe is the quick assembly. Many of the ingredients can be prepared in
large batches and refrigerated in sealed Ziploc bags of Ziploc plastic boxes for
quick salad preparation any night of the week)
For
the dressing and apples:
1/3
cup maple syrup
1
½ tsp balsamic vinegar
3-4
firm, tart apples, cored, quartered and thinly sliced
Mix together maple
syrup with balsamic vinegar in a plastic container (Ziploc Box) just big enough
to hold 3-4 sliced pears. Core and thinly slice 3-4 firm apples and place in
the maple syrup mixture in the container (Ziploc boxes work well.). Seal lid
well. Turn and shake the container 4-5 times to coat the apples. Set aside. These can be stored in the
refrigerator for 2-3 days, if necessary. The juice from the apples mixes with
the syrup and balsamic vinegar and makes a very sweet dressing to be drizzled
(later) over the greens.
For
the salad:
Thinly slice:
3-4 dried figs
½ of a red or some other colourful pepper.
Crumble 1/3 cup Stilton cheese and set aside.
¼ cup sugared pecans* (buy at the Bulk barn or make
yourself with the recipe below)
2-3 handfuls of mixed greens
On a large platter, place handfuls of organic
greens. Sprinkle sliced figs and red pepper slices over top. Drizzle about 1/3
of the apple mixture juice over top. Place 8-10 apple slices on top. Sprinkle
Stilton cheese over top. Finish by sprinkling 1/3 cup of the cooled sugared
pecans or walnuts over top. Do not toss this salad—serve in this layered
arrangement.
*Spicy-Sugared pecans/walnuts recipe
2 tbsp butter
2 cups pecans or walnuts
1/8 tsp EACH: cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg
2 tbsp sugar.
Stir
nuts in melted butter in fry pan. Heat 3-4 minutes on medium heat and until
heated and very light brown. Remove from heat. Mix spices and sugar in a small
bowl. Sprinkle mixture over nuts and stir well. Line a large cookie sheet with
aluminium foil. Place nuts in an even layer and toast at 300F for 10-12 min,
stirring at 3 min intervals until brown. Note: These burn easily so watch them carefully.
Apple Crisp Cheesecake
Note: Make this cake the night before you plan to
serve it. It is best served after it has firmed up a little more with a
good chilling in the refrigerator overnight!
Crust:
2 cups graham cracker
crumbs
1 cup one minute or
quick cooking oats
1/3 cup brown sugar,
tightly packed
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp cloves
2/3 cup butter, melted
Combine all of the
above ingredients. Press into the bottom and up sides (1 ½ inches) of a 10 inch
spring form pan. Chill
Topping:
¼ cup one minute or
quick cooking oats
¼ cup brown sugar,
packed well
¼ cup all-purpose
flour
1 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp butter
Combine all of the
above ingredients until crumbly and set aside.
Filling:
3 pkgs of 250 g cream
cheese blocks
1 cup brown sugar,
tightly packed
¾ cup sour cream or
plain yogurt
4 eggs
2 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp cloves
½ tsp nutmeg
2 apples, sliced
Beat cream cheese, brown
sugar and sour cream (or yogurt) in a large bowl with an electric mixer on
MEDIUM. Beat for two minutes. Add eggs, one at a time and beat well after each
addition. Add spices. Pour into chilled crust. Place apples evenly over
filling. Sprinkle topping overtop.
Bake at 325F for 65-70
minutes or just until the centre is softest. Run a knife around the edge of
cake to loosen the cake from the pan, then allow cake to cool completely on a
wire rack. Chill overnight in the fridge for best results. Serves 16.
No Fail Spicy Topless Apple Tart
Use McIntosh,
Cortland, or Northern Spy apples.
Pastry:
2 cups all-purpose
flour
2 tbsp white sugar
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp cloves
¾ cup cool butter, cut
into small cubes
1 egg yolk, beaten
2 tbsp water
Filling:
6 cups (7-8 medium
sized apples) peeled, coarsely grated apples (no need to core!)
2 cups white sugar
¼ cup white flour
1 tsp cinnamon
icing sugar
Pastry: In a large bowl, combine
flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon and cloves. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter
until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Mix in egg yolks with water; stir into
flour mixture to form a soft dough. Using fingertips, spread dough evenly onto
bottom and up sides of 11” flan pan or fluted glass dish, patting gently.
Filling: Combine all ingredients
except icing sugar. Spread mixture evenly over pastry. (After filling the
pastry, make a tin foil ring to place over the edges of the pastry to protect
it from burning.) Bake at 375 F oven until apples are tender or about 45
minutes. Be sure to turn and check after 20 min and place the foil ring on the
pastry edge if necessary to prevent burning. Let cool. Sift icing sugar over
top. Serve with frozen yogurt or ice
cream.
