Apple Time!

Is there anything as autumn-homey as the smell of apples cooking? Spiced cider, apple butter, candy apples and apple pie; September is apple time!

Macintosh apples

Our trees are right on cue this first day of fall. It was an excellent year for fruit here in the Pacific Northwest. I picked buckets of red Macintosh apples last week. Today I am canning applesauce and freezing apple pie filling.

Canning Applesauce

We have six apple trees and four crab apples. The Macintosh is my favorite for taste, smell and looks, with the Granny Smith a close second.

The Macintosh tree in our orchard.

The crab apple tree wins my vote for the prettiest year-round yard tree and gives us more delicious apples for adding to sauces and jellies than we can use. They’re pretty for home décor use just set in a bowl, dried for potpourri or made into a wreath.

My favorite Crab apple tree

My painting, “Wild Apple,” is of black-capped chickadees sitting in this tree. It made the cover of the 2013 “Psalms for the Seasons” calendar and has been made into home and garden flags. You can take a peek, (and purchase if you wish) at various shops and online here...Psalms for the Season Calendar .

crab apples in my Jadeite bowl

Of course I had to try out a batch of the pie filling as a reward after weekend gardening.

First fresh apple pie of the season!

While waiting for the canner, I chopped some ingredients for fresh apple chutney with a “kick” to go with our pork chops tonight. Here’s the easy recipe:

Aunt Nancy's Chutney

Aunt Nancy’s Apple Chutney

1 tbsp olive oil

2 large, crisp apples -peel, core and chop

1/2 cup onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup raisins

1 jalapeño, seeded and finely chopped

Orange zest from 1 small orange

1/4 cup cider vinegar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp ginger
1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp each of salt & pepper

Sauté onions, apples and garlic in olive oil in a saucepan until tender, but not soft. Combine rest of the ingredients and simmer over medium-low heat for 30 minutes with the lid off, stirring now and then. Use with chicken, pork or brie cheese and crackers. Can be refrigerated for up to 7 days.