Best Tastes of Autumn
Posted by Arwen Mosher in Food on Monday, September 15, 2008 1:32 PM
Nothing says “autumn” to me like apple picking.
All through my childhood, apple picking was a tradition in my family. We’d wait for a nice day, pile in the van, and drive out to the orchard.
With so many of us working together it only took about fifteen minutes to pick several bushels of apples, but that was all the better. It gave us plenty of time to romp between the trees and enjoy the fall day.
Bryan and I have managed to make it to the apple orchard every year since we’ve been married, and we’ll go this year too. As soon as I get word that the nearby orchard is picking our favorite Cortland variety, we’ll pack up the toddler and head out. She’s old enough to enjoy picking apples this year, so I anticipate we’ll have a great time.
Of course, picking apples - and eating them out of hand, with that fresh-from-the-tree crispness - is only the first step of the autumn-apple culinary journey. Around here, the journey usually ends sometime in November, with me cutting up a bunch of soft, spoiling apples for making applesauce. In between those first and last steps are the parts of the journey that are the most delicious. We have to use up all those apples somehow!
I have a weakness for apple pie, and thanks to my mom’s training I make a mean one. (The trick is in the crust, and Danielle’s recipe and tips are right on.) I also love a simple baked apple, and there’s nothing like homemade apple butter.
I have to say, though, that for maximizing the result-to-effort ratio - getting the most “yums” per minute spent cooking - there’s nothing like apple crisp. It’s simple; it’s fast; it’s delicious.
I’ve tried a number of apple crisp recipes but I’ve never met one that I liked better than the recipe my parents always used. I think the secret is that it has a decent amount of sugar and fat, so you get a nice caramel-y effect when it’s baked. If you make only one apple crisp this year, indulge yourself - make this one!
Apple Crisp
For apples:
4-1/2 c. peeled and sliced apples
1-1/2 Tbsp. flour
3/8 c. white sugar
1-1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1-1/2 Tbsp. water
For topping:
1 c. oats*
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. butter
2/3 c. brown sugar
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Butter or grease an 8x8-inch square baking pan or casserole dish.
2. Mix apples in a bowl with flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt, and water. Dump into prepared pan.
3. Cut together with pastry blender or your fingers: oats, salt, butter, and brown sugar, until well-mixed into clumps. Sprinkle mixture on top of apples.
4. Bake 35 minutes, or until bubbling and apples are fork-tender. Serve warm, with ice cream if desired.**
*You may use quick oats or old-fashioned oats (do not use instant), or a mixture of the two. More quick oats make a crunchier topping, and more old-fashioned oats make a chewier topping. I like to use a half-cup of each.
**It is also good straight out of the pan the next morning.
Print Blog
Email a FriendPost a Comment
By submitting this form, you give Faith And Family Magazine permission to publish this comment. Comments will be published at our discretion, and may be edited for clarity and length. For best formatting, please limit your response to one paragraph and don't hit "enter" to force line breaks.
