Apples in Season

The best of the summer fruit and veg. are coming near the end of their season, but don’t despair as one of our fantastic native fruits, the humble apple is now at its very best.

By apples I don’t mean the shiny watery ones in the supermarkets, but the old native varieties like the ones being saved by Irish Seed Savers www.irishseedsavers.ie or the ones you find on the organic farmers stalls at markets all over the country – Denis and Duncan Healy’s stands throughout Dublin are particularly recommended.

You often don’t even need to spend any money to enjoy this autumn gift. You are bound to have an elderly neighbour or relative that would love you to come and pick their apples in exchange for a tart or two.

Apples also grow in some of our public parks and hang over onto laneways from back gardens throughout the city. Technically, picking up windfalls that drop onto public property is clearing litter not stealing (or so I believe).

Many of Dublin’s leafy suburbs are lined with crab apple trees which can be substituted for cooking apples when making apple jelly and even apple sauce.

I don’t want to compete with reader’s mums and grannies, so ask them for the recipe for apple tart that you remember from childhood.

Don’t forget that apples are not just for dessert but work with meat dishes such as pork and fowl. Cubes of apples fried in butter are a delicious garnish for free range chicken or guinea fowl.

My favourite match for apple is probably with black pudding. A regular lunch in my house is some crusty bread, slices of fried black pudding and slices of whatever apples I have to hand.

If you want to get fancy fry some black pudding and slices of apple and layer them one on top of the other and serve with a green salad which also includes some apple matchsticks.

Bramley Apple Sauce
Perfect match for Roast Pork and poultry such as duck or goose. Also delicious as a starter served with Clonakilty Black Pudding (or your local butcher’s version).

For every 200g of peeled and chopped Bramley apple add 20-30g of sugar and a splash of water. Cook in a non stick pot over a brisk heat for 10-15 minutes.

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