Too Many Apples? Try These Recipes
It's a Good Year for Apples
The end of summer is approaching and this year looks like being a good year for apples for us, after a few lean years, so I've been looking for different recipes using apples to make sure they aren't wasted. I think there is only so much apple pie or apple crumble anyone can eat.
Some of these are methods to make the apples last longer and two of them use, or could use, previously prepared apple marmalade. There are many different ways of using apple marmalade but I have chosen just the two of them.
The same of course goes for dried apple rings but my own preference is to use them as nibbles or snacks when I can feel vaguely virtuous.
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Cook Time
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: Up to 20 hours
Serves: Any number
Ingredients
- Fresh apples
- Lemon juice
- Dowels or cake racks
Instructions
- Peel and core the apples through the centre.
- Cut them into half centimetre/quarter inch slices.
- Place slices in water with plenty of lemon juice, to help prevent them discolouring. Alternatively you could use salted water.
- Drain the rings and pat dry with paper towel.
- Thread the rings on to dowels or knitting needles, or spread them on the cake racks. Using something like knitting needles means you can fit far more rings in the oven to dry.
- Heat the oven to 150 degrees C.
- Leave in the oven for 10 to 20 hours. This has to be vague because apples vary in how much moisture they contain and it also depends on the thickness of the slices.
- When they are done they should still be slightly supple, like a raisin.
- They can be used as a snack as they are, or diced over a breakfast cereal.
Apple Marmalade
Ingredients
- 2 large cooking apples (500 g)
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons water
- 25 g butter
Instructions
- Peel, core and chop the apples.
- Place in a saucepan with the butter, sugar and water.
- Cook over a very gentle heat until the apple is tender.
- Simmer until there is very little juice left. It shouldn't be too runny.
- Either mash the apples or pass through a fine sieve, according to taste.
- At this stage it can be put into jars as you would jam, or used as a basis for spiced apple compote or Danish Peasant Girl in a Veil.
Old Fashioned Spiced Apple Compote
This recipe is a development of the Apple Marmalade recipe but I am giving ingredients and instructions from scratch.
Ingredients
- 6 large apples or 1.5 kg
- 1 lemon
- 100 g raisins
- 50 g butter
- 4 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons rum or sherry
- OR 2 tablespoons tea or orange juice
- 1 cinnamon stick
- I vanilla pod
- A thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger root
Instructions
- Peel and core the apples.
- Cut into chunks.
- Wash, zest and juice the lemon
- Place the raisins in a bowl, sprinkle with rum (or sherry/tea/orange juice) and lemon juice
- Leave until the raisins absorb the liquid and plump up.
- Melt the butter in a pan and add the apple.
- Heat gently until simmering.
- Peel ginger and chop it finely.
- After 10 minutes of cooking the apples, add vanilla, cinnamon, ginger and the drained raisins. Reserve the liquid from the raisins.
- Continue to simmer for 30 minutes over low heat.
- Put reserved juice in a small saucepan with the sugar and chopped lemon zest.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, stirring often, for for about 15 minutes until the liquid forms a syrup.
- Pour into a bowl.
- After removing the vanilla and cinnamon from the cooked apples, add the syrup , stir with a fork, and crush the apple to whatever consistency you prefer.
- Serve warm.
*Tip: Do not put the compote in the refrigerator before serving, because the cold affects its flavor.
Danish Peasant Girl in a Veil
Ingredients
- 1 portion of apple marmalade
- 100 g breadcrumbs
- 25 g butter
- 50 g brown sugar
- Half teaspoon cinnamon
- 300 ml whipping cream
- 4 tablespoons icing sugar
- Lemon juice
- 1 and a half tablespoons chopped walnuts
- Glass serving dish or individual dishes.
Instructions
- Melt the butter and add breadcrumbs and sugar.
- Stir continuously while cooking over a medium heat until golden brown.
- Add cinnamon and cook for a minute longer.
- Leave to cool.
- Whip the cream with icing sugar and a squeeze of lemon juice until thick.
- Layer the apple marmalade, breadcrumbs and cream in serving dish or individual dishes. It looks particularly attractive layered in a glass dish.
- Finish off with chopped nuts
An alternative way of serving it is to omit the cream from the layering and serve the dessert with pouring cream.
The recipes above I have given you are ones I have used over the years to do something a little different with any surplus apples. I'm sure you have your own standbys and I'd love to hear them, if so. Variety is the spice of life.
But there is one last idea, one I haven't yet tried. It looks truly spectacular and yet not so hard to do. It won't use up large quantities of apples but it does deserve a mention.
