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Variety is the Spice of Life
Move over Red Delicious, there is more to an apple than red and sweet,
although we grow the best Red Chief Red Delicious you can find. It's time to
commingle the multitude of apple flavors that make your trip to Maple Lawn Farms
really great. Here's what you can find:
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Sports of MACINTOSH can be grown well in Pennsylvania. We offer
MACSPUR, a
squat, juicy apple early in the fall season. It's addition to the first few
batches of cider make it the best of the season. Look for MAC Cider soon. You
can zap a MAC in the microwave by simply coring and filling the center with
brown sugar and raisins in 2 min. or less for a quick baked apple.
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The RED CHIEF in our dwarf orchard is the ever favorite dessert apple great
for lunch boxes, wonderful with gobs of peanut butter on each slice, or rolled
in raisins. For gourmet snacking, role chunks in mayonnaise before dipping in
crisp bacon chips, chopped nuts, grated cheese and serve on a pick. Or chop up
without paring, add to 1/4 cup chopped walnuts, enough cream cheese to make a
paste and spread on celery stalks, then cut into bite size pieces. You can use
the BISBY REDS from the old orchard in the same way, and both will last into the
winter if stored properly.
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Eastern GOLD DELICIOUS have always had the problem of
russeting, getting
brownish freckles. These don't hurt the flavor at all, in fact the GOLDS from
the old orchard stand up well in popularity to the SMOOTHEE GOLDS in the dwarf
orchard for all sorts of eating and baking experiences. If you like your apples
crisp and crunchy, come early in the season; if you like them more mellow and
yellow wait till later. Golds fry up in a skillet after bacon and shimmer
with flavor sprinkled with a bit of brown sugar. And they are an ever popular
sauce apple cooking up 3 quarts in the microwave in just 10 minutes!
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EMPIRES are taking customers by storm. The season we had very few
STAYMANS,
people tried them, and have been requesting them ever since. This cross between
a MACINTOSH and RED DELICIOUS maintains the best qualities of both with a flavor
that tastes like you've bitten into champagne. We've started using them in
Grandmother's famous Apple Crisp recipe: Pare and slice 6 cups EMPIRE APPLES.
Coat with 1/2 cut sugar and place in greased 9" square baking pan. Mix
together 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 tsp. baking powder, 3/4 tsp. salt, and 1
unbeaten egg until creamy. Distribute over apple mixture. Then melt 1/3 cut
butter to pour over all. Sprinkle with 1/2 tsp. cinnamon and bake at 350 degrees
F 30-40 min.
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Only the stout hearted seek the JONNEE, hardest and tartest of our varieties
this time of the year. JONNEE is a smaller apple, but what it lacks in size it
makes up for in flavor. For a great brunch, spread 12 slices of rye or other
flavorful whole-wheat bread with mayonnaise and mustard mixture. Top each with
slices of baked ham, four slices each of thinly sliced JONNEES circles cored and
Swiss cheese. Then broil until slightly browned.
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Late Season Dwarf Varieties
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This season's DOUBLE RED STAYMANS have already begun to split from the excess
rain of the 2000 summer. We're keeping our fingers crossed that this popular
variety will please you when you find individual apples which haven't split. So
many people prefer these and the old time STAYMAN WINESAPS for all sorts of
uses. WINESAP SNITZ can be made by slicing paper thin pieces to dry in the
oven at 150 degrees F on a metal cooling rack. Or place them on your wood stove
and remove until the desired crispness suits you. Tightly cover to refrigerate
or freeze. Or pare and core 6 STAYMANS. Dissolve 1/2 cup red cinnamon candies
and 1/4 cup sugar in 2 cups water over low heat. Add whole apples as prepared
and cook slowly until transparent, but not soft. Chill and serve.
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JONAGOLD can't be beat for combining the best qualities of both the JONATHAN
and GOLD DELICIOUS. It's hard to keep enough of them for demand, because they
have a bi-annual vigor for over-producing, then under producing. Hopefully, this
year is a bountiful one for them.
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MUTSU is an improvement on the old CRISPEN, a huge greenish apple with solid
flesh that approaches Granny Smith for hardness, but is less tart. Popular
demand has warranted our planting more of these trees for future use. Some like
the Mutsu green when it's beginning to ripen. It's absolutely the juiciest
apple. One man tells us he puts his fresh picked Mutsu basket in a closet and
takes them out on Christmas when they are golden and very sweet.
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Totally red, perfect for baking, the LAWSPUR ROME holds it shape well under
cooking stresses. It's a flat-like apple that makes great circle slices when
cored. It can be used in pie baking, dumplings, etc. For ROMAN PEANUT CRUNCH,
split and lightly toast English muffins. Spread with chunky peanut butter. Core
2 LAWSPUR ROMES, but don't peel. But into four slices and place on muffin
halves. Partially cook or broil bacon slices cut in half. Top apple with bacon
and sprinkle with cinnamon. Broil until bacon is crisp.
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COMMANDER YORK is the last apple to ripen, and well worth waiting for.
Totally distinctive in shape, texture and taste, it's granddaddy YORK IMPERIAL
is native to this area. But this strain colors better. Lopsided, a bit flat, it
retains its reputation as the best processing apple. As it mellows, it maintains
its density and takes on a nutty flavor. Yum! For outstanding dumplings:
Prepare pie pastry and roll into 14"-15" circle then cut into
quarters. Pare and core COMMANDER YORK apple halves, then place them in the
center of each pastry. Fill center of apple with sugar, brown, sugar, cinnamon
or raisins or any combination. Dot with butter. Wrap corners around York and
seal tightly. Place 12 such dumplings into 13" x 9" cake pan with
edges touching. Sprinkle tops with sugar if desired. Bake in 425 degree F. oven
40-50 minutes till bubbly and golden brown.
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GRANNY SMITH is a very late ripening green apple, tart, hard and very crisp,
definitely a keeper. The granny holds up well in baking, and is a great addition
to our 8 Great Apple Pie recipe which can only be combined in the month of
October when there are at least 8 varieties of apples from which to choose. For
snacking, dip the GRANNY slices in melted caramel.
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Sweetness worth waiting for: FUJI if the absolute last apple to ripen and
available only the last 2 weeks of the season before Halloween. This striped
apple makes up in sweetness what it lacks in looks, and it holds its firmness
well into the spring. It is great for eating out of hand, or in salads, or to
bake. |
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