Apple Season is Upon Us

Do you enjoy a good apple pie, crumble or other dessert? Do you enjoy using apples in savory dishes? If you do, you are in luck as we are now entering Apple Season. In this Cooking Tip, I will discuss the different types of apples, which are best for different preparations along with some apple trivia.

Let’s start with that trivia.

• The US is the second largest apple producer second to China.
• Apples are the most consumed fruit in the US.
• It is said that over 2500 varieties of apples are grown in the US but only about 100 are grown commercially.
• One of the newer apple varieties (although not the only one) is Cosmic Crisp. See this Tip for more about that one.
• The most-grown apple is the Red Delicious. It is not the best choice for cooking and baking, though, as it has poor flavor and a mealy texture.
• The crabapple is the only apple native to the US.
• One 9-inch apple pie requires about 2 pounds of apples.
• The top 10 varieties in the US are Red Delicious, Gala, Granny Smith, Fuji, Golden Delicious, Honey Crisp, McIntosh, Rome, Cripps Pink (aka Pink Lady) and Empire.
• US has ~5000 apple growers.
• One of every three apples grown in the US is exported.
• Only 5% of the apples consumed in the US are imported.

Even though we can buy apples year-round in our supermarkets, they are best when purchased in season. Depending on the variety, that could mean as early as July and on through November. Apples sold out of season have been held in commercial cold-storage facilities. Those facilities can keep them somewhat ripe but the apples can lose crispiness and become mealy.

If you go to a pick-your-own orchard, you can expect summer apples to be ready to be picked starting in early August. Autumn apples will start to be picked around the beginning of September. Apples picked too early are tart and small. Apples picked too late tend to suffer in terms of texture, flavor and shelf life.

Whether or not an apple will continue to ripen once picked depends on how mature it is. If an apple falls off a tree when it’s too young, it will not continue to ripen. Nor will very young apples ripen in storage. Apples that have reached sufficient maturity can continue to ripen even after picking. Note that maturity and ripeness are different characteristics. Maturity in apples only indicates that the fruit has developed to the point where it will finish ripening on its own, even if removed from the tree. So, a “mature” apple is not necessarily a “ripe” one.

Growers will pick apples meant for storage once they are “mature”, but before they are perfectly ripe. Apples for fresh eating are best left on the tree until ripe.

When picking an apple choose those that are firm with tight, unbroken skins. As many varieties have naturally dull surfaces, do not be afraid of those that do not have the very shiny finish that you often see in the supermarkets. Choose apples without bruises and that feel firm and heavy. The fragrance of an apple is a good indicator of freshness and quality.

When I teach cooking classes that involve apples, I always get the question of which variety they should use. I wish I could tell you that there were only certain apples that were suited for certain purposes. That is not true although different “experts” will offer their recommendations. It depends on the flavor and texture you want. What I have done for you is to consult eight different sources and made a chart of which apples each of these separate sources recommend. I will give you a list of the apples that seemed to be favorites with at least four of these sites.

Before I do that, I want to mention one recommendation you read repeatedly. That is to use a combination of different apples in your pie. Some apples are considered “Sweet & Firm” while others are considered “Tart & Soft”. Therefore, they will react differently in the recipe. Many chefs feel you can get the best of both worlds by combining apples from these two different categories. Choose one to provide more texture and another to amp up the flavor. Not all agree, though. Serious Eats states when you do this, you “end up with a pie that’s got nice firm chunks of apple interspersed with brown apple mush.”

The firm/sweet apples are those that tend to hold their shape better. The soft/tart varieties will cook down to a mushier filling. Here is a list of some of those.

FIRM/SWEET	SOFT/TART
Ambrosia	Belle de Boskoop
Cortland	Bramley
Elstar	Cox’s Orange Pippin
Gala	Granny Smith
Golden Delicious	Gravenstein
Golden Russet	Jonathan
Jonagold	Macintosh
Liberty	Newton Pippin
Pink Lady	Northern Spy
	Prima
	Spartan

Now, here are the apples that seem to please a majority of the sites I consulted if you are making apple pie. Fortunately, most of these are easily found in your supermarket or farmer’s market.

• Braeburn
  • Flavor is a nice balance of sweet and tart.
  • They will remain firm when baked.
  • They work well in pies/tarts where you do not want an overly juicy texture.
• Golden Delicious
  • Flavor is sweet, mellow and buttery.
  • A great all-around cooking apple as it maintains its shape when cooked.
• Granny Smith
  • Flavor is tart and sour, but it is also one-dimensional.
  • Texture is crisp.
  • Best when paired with sweeter and spicier apples.
• Honeycrisp
  • A very popular eating apple with a honey-sweet and somewhat tart flavor.
  • Texture is crisp and juicy.
  • Good for baking as well as applesauce.
• Jonagold
  • A cross of Jonathan and Golden Delicious apples.
  • Flavor is tangy but sweet. Some describe it as slightly spicy.
  • They hold their shape when baked.
  • Good in salads and applesauce.
  • Because of their small size, thick skin and good shelf-life, they are a great choice for making caramel apples.

Now that you have picked and brought your apples home, how can you prolong their freshness? Apple experts recommend the following.

• Refrigerate them – apples ripen 6-10 times faster on the counter than in the fridge. Some recommend putting them in a plastic bag before refrigerating. The best temperature is between 30-32°F with a humidity of 90-95%. The rate at which apples lose flavor and juiciness is proportional to the temperature at which they are stored.
• Separate apples – wrap each apple in sheets of paper, which prevents one apple from going bad and then ripening the rest of them.
• Some apples are better suited for longer storage than others. The best keepers are McIntosh, Fuji, Rome and Granny Smith. Apples harvested later in the season are better keepers.
• Avoid apples with bruises, cuts, or soft spots.
• Apples pick up tastes from other things in the refrigerator so do not put them in the same drawer as something with a strong smell.
• Apples produce ethylene gas, which ripens other things faster. Do not store with other items you do not want to ripen. Keep away from veggies you do not want to wilt (lettuce) or lose their crispiness (celery).

We also all know that apples turn brown when cut. This is due to a chemical reaction that occurs because an enzyme is released when the apple is cut and subsequently reacts with oxygen. Preventing this is achieved by blocking the oxygen, reversing the chemical reaction, changing the pH of the environment or stopping the reaction by altering the temperature. Here are a few of the suggested actions.

• Acidulated water– Toss the apples in a bit of water to which an acid has been added, typically lemon juice or cider vinegar.
• Honey water – Add 2 tablespoons of honey to 1 cup of water and pour over apple slices. This can keep your apples white for more than 24 hours. Even a 30-second submersion can prevent browning for up to 8 hours.
• Saltwater solution – Add ½ teaspoon kosher salt to 1 cup water. Add apples and soak for 10 minutes. Drain and store until ready for use. Rinse salt off with tap water just before serving.
• Plain water – Submerge apples in plain water using a paper towel on top to keep them under the water and away from the oxygen in the air. Or, put the apples and water in a zipper-lock bag with the air pressed out. Do not soak for more than about 15 minutes to avoid altering the texture.
• Plastic wrap – Wrap cut apples in plastic wrap to keep the oxygen away.
• Carbonated drinks – Submerge apples in a carbonated beverage such as lemon-lime soda, ginger ale or seltzer for 3-5 minutes. Drain and rinse before use.

There is one final thought I want to leave you with. Have any of you thought, as I do, that fruit just doesn’t taste as good as it used to? I think this all the time. How often have you bitten into an apple just to find its flavor bland? According to Eat The Seasons, “The apples sold in supermarkets are varieties developed for good disease resistance or storage properties, often at the expense of flavor. As author Elspeth Huxley wrote: ‘You cannot sell a blemished apple in the supermarket, but you can sell a tasteless one provided it is shiny, smooth, even, uniform and bright.’ For more interesting and flavorsome varieties, look out for growers’ stalls in farmers’ markets or visit a pick-your-own orchard.”

When visiting a fruit stand in California, we were told the same thing about strawberries. He told us that what people want to buy are large, red strawberries. Although they may look pretty, they are often tasteless whereas the small, less-desired berries are more likely chock-full of flavor. If we would all be more discerning consumers, maybe this would eventually change. In the meantime, I feel fortunate that my husband loves to grow his own fruit and vegetables!