Crisp ideas
Humble apple delight to cook with
Growing up in an apple growing region I admit that I didn’t think of apples as a particularly special fruit. Not like feijoas or peaches for example, which have a short season and can’t be easily stored fresh. However, the more I cook predominantly with the seasons, I have come to appreciate the fresh autumn apple. In particular, the heritage apple varieties with their tart and diverse flavours, and excellent cooking qualities.
Apple & ricotta hotcakes with coconut caramel sauce
Any apple can be used in this recipe (I used braeburn) as the short cooking time results in a tender crunch. This recipe makes a smallish batch as they are best eaten warm drizzled with caramel sauce – double the recipe if feeding more people.
Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 15 minutes Serves 3-4 as a snack
Hotcakes
1 egg
2 tbsp ricotta or thick greek-style yoghurt cup (85ml) milk cup (115g) flour 1 tsp sugar tsp baking powder
1 small apple, roughly chopped into 1cm pieces
Butter or oil for cooking
Coconut caramel sauce 200ml coconut cream 2 tbsp brown sugar Pinch of salt
First, get the coconut caramel on the heat to simmer while making the hot cakes. Combine the coconut cream, sugar and salt in a small saucepan. Heat gently, stirring to combine. Simmer gently, stirring often, until the sauce coats the back of the spoon. Pour into a bowl to serve.
Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl whisk together the egg, ricotta or yoghurt and milk. Add the flour and baking powder, and whisk into a thick batter. Fold in the apple pieces.
Heat a heavy-based frying pan over a moderate heat. Add a small knob of butter or drizzle of oil, swirling to coat the base of the pan. Dollop heaped tablespoons of the batter into the hot pan, cooking until golden around the edges. Flip and cook until the hotcakes are cooked through. Repeat with the remaining mixture, adding extra butter or oil to the pan between batches.
Serve immediately drizzled with the coconut caramel.
Baked apples with date crumble
It is important to use cooking apples when baking whole apples. They are quite different to eating apples, being generally tarter, and when cooked the flesh will soften and melt.
I used 6 small golden delicious apples gathered from my sister’s autumn garden. If you are using larger, store-bought apples such as granny smith, then 4 apples will be enough. Make the most of the oven heat and bake some jacket potatoes for dinner at the same time.
Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 45 minutes Serves 4 4-6 cooking apples – see note above cup (50g) dried pitted dates, chopped
50g room temperature butter
cup (50g) rolled oats
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Preheat oven 180C.
Place the chopped dried dates into a sieve and slowly pour 1 cup boiling water over to soften. Sit over a bowl to drain.
Use an apple corer to remove the core from the apples, plus a little extra flesh to make a 11⁄2 cm wide hole. Use a small knife to cut around the belly of each apple, so they can open up while cooking and to prevent the skin from bursting.
In a mixing bowl, use a fork to mash together the softened dates and butter. Add the rolled oats and cinnamon and keep mixing until combined. Use your hands to press the mixture firmly into the apple cavities, mounding extra mix onto the top of each apple.
Place apples in a small baking dish so they are sitting upright. Bake for 35-45 minutes until the flesh is soft. Note: the cooking time will vary depending on the variety of apple used and size. Serve with cream or vanilla icecream.
Nicola Galloway is a cookbook author, culinary tutor and homegrown enthusiast. homegrown-kitchen.co.nz