Apple Cookbook (5 page)

Truly, this is a great way to make a vegetable omelette pie. In fact, a frittata may appear on my table for breakfast, lunch, or even dinner. I may use leftover vegetables or a variety of fresh vegetables in season. It tastes delicious warm or at room temperature and is therefore excellent for a brunch buffet
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1 tablespoon olive or canola oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 red or green bell pepper, chopped

1 clove of garlic, minced

1 medium apple (Granny Smith, Empire, Braeburn)

4 eggs

2 tablespoons water

½ teaspoon dried sage

¼ teaspoon ground mace

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

½ cup grated Cheddar, Jack, or mozzarella cheese

1
. Heat the oil in a medium-sized skillet. Add the onion, pepper, and garlic, and cook over low heat until the onion is tender, about 15 minutes.

2
. Peel, core, and thinly slice the apple. Add to the vegetables and cook for 5 minutes.

3
. Beat the eggs with the water, sage, mace, and pepper. Pour over the vegetables. Sprinkle with the Cheddar.

4
. Cover the pan and cook over low heat for 10 minutes, until the eggs are set and the cheese has melted. Serve at once.

Yield: 2–4 servings

This is one of my husband’s favorite breakfasts. I make the crêpes (thin pancakes), and he cooks the sausages. You could also make the crêpes ahead of time and stack them between sheets of wax paper
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2 cups canned apple slices (page 157), drained

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground mace

3 tablespoons butter

8 link sausages, 5–6 inches long

8 crêpes (below) maple syrup

1
. Sprinkle the apple slices with the cinnamon and mace.

2
. Heat the butter in a medium-sized skillet; sauté the apples for about 15 minutes, or until soft and golden. Keep warm.

3
. Prick the sausages and cook over low heat in a greased skillet for about 10 minutes. Keep warm in a low oven or covered on top of the stove.

4
. Roll the crêpes around the sausages, top with sautéed apples, and serve hot with maple syrup.

Yield: 4 servings

You may want to use ready-grated mixed cheeses in this recipe. Low-fat cheeses work fine, too; however, avoid the fat-free grated cheeses — they have a rubbery texture when heated
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3 cups canned apple slices (page 157), drained

¼ cup apple juice or cider

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

8 crêpes (below)

1 cup grated Cheddar or Cheshire cheese

1 tablespoon butter, melted

1
. Combine the apple slices, juice, and nutmeg in a medium-sized skillet, and simmer over low heat for 10–15 minutes, until the apples are tender and the liquid has almost evaporated.

2
. Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a shallow 9- by 13-inch baking dish.

3
. Fill each crêpe with about ¼ cup of the apple mixture topped with 2 tablespoons or so of the Cheddar. (Spoon the filling onto the lower third and roll up from the bottom.)

4
. Place the crêpes, seam side down, in the greased dish. Brush with a little melted butter and bake for 15 minutes, or until hot.

Yield: 4 servings

When I was growing up in Britain, pancakes were often served for dessert and without fail on Pancake or Shrove Tuesday. We squeezed fresh lemon juice over the pancakes and then sprinkled them with sugar
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2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1½ teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 cups sour cream or 1½ cups plain yogurt

¼ cup apple juice or cider

¼ cup sugar or honey

¼ cup butter, melted

2 eggs

2 medium apples (McIntosh, Golden Delicious, Empire)

vegetable oil for frying

butter, lemon juice, sugar (optional)

1
. Place the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl, blender, or food processor. Add the sour cream, apple juice, sugar, butter, and eggs. Beat or blend until smooth. The batter will be very thick. Allow the batter to rest for 30–60 minutes.

2
. Core and grate the apples. Stir into the batter.

3
. Heat a heavy skillet over medium-high heat and grease with approximately 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil. Drop the batter onto the hot griddle a few tablespoons at a time (for larger pancakes, measure ¼ cup batter).

4
. When bubbles appear on top after approximately 2 minutes, turn and brown the other side. Serve with butter, lemon juice, and sugar.

Yield: 4–6 servings (16–20 pancakes)

Great for breakfast, these tasty, savory hotcakes also can replace bread or a side dish at dinner. The hotcakes are quite filling; often one or two per person will suffice. Leftover hotcakes can be crumbled and used as stuffing for Cornish game hens or chicken
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1 medium apple (Granny Smith, Ida Red, Golden Delicious)

1 tablespoon butter

1 scallion, thinly sliced

¾ cup yellow cornmeal

¼ cup sifted all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon ground mace

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

¾ cup milk

½ cup grated Cheddar cheese

1 egg

vegetable oil for frying

1
. Core and finely chop the apple.

2
. Melt the butter in a skillet, and sauté the apple and scallion for 3 minutes.

3
. In a large bowl, mix the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, mace, and cayenne. Make a well in the center.

4
. In a small bowl, beat the milk, Cheddar and egg. Add the sautéed apple and scallion. Stir into the cornmeal mixture.

5
. Heat approximately 1 teaspoon vegetable oil on a griddle or in a heavy skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, drop ¼ cup batter onto the griddle and cook for 2 minutes or so, until the hotcakes are golden on the bottom. Turn and cook for 3 minutes longer. Serve immediately with butter, or keep warm in the oven.

Yield: 4–8 servings (8 hotcakes)

Fritters are a treat for any time of day, and they are a snap to make. To keep them crunchy, not soggy, cook them on high heat and don’t overcrowd the skillet. Drizzle hot fritters with syrup or dust them with confectioners’ sugar
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1 large apple (Rome Beauty, Fuji, Jonagold, Mutsu/Crispin)

2 eggs

½ cup sifted all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

vegetable oil for deep frying

1
. Peel, core, and grate the apple into a medium-sized bowl.

2
. Separate the eggs. Drop the whites into a large bowl; the yolks into a small one. Whisk the yolks until light and stir into the grated apple. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg, and stir to combine.

3
. Beat the egg whites until stiff and fold into the apple mixture.

4
. Heat ¼ inch of vegetable oil in a hot skillet. Drop the batter by heaping tablespoons into the hot oil. Cook for about 1 minute, turn, and cook the other side for the same length of time. The fritters should be golden brown. Drain on absorbent paper and serve immediately, or keep warm in a low oven.

Yield: 2–4 servings (12–16 fritters)

These apple ring fritters taste good at any time of day. You don’t have to let the batter rest for so long, but even a short resting time seems to make the fritters puffier
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1½ cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 cup beer

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 eggs, separated

5 large apples (Rome Beauty, Mutsu/Crispin)

2–4 cups vegetable oil for deep frying

confectioners’ sugar

1
. Combine 1¼ cups of the flour, the beer, sugar, vegetable oil, and egg yolks in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth. Cover and leave at room temperature for at least 1 hour.

2
. Core and cut the apples into ½-inch rings.

3
. Pour at least 2 inches of oil into a wok or large skillet. Heat to 375°F.

4
. In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff. Stir the batter and fold in the egg whites.

5
. Dip the apple rings first in the remaining ¼ cup flour to coat both sides, then in the batter. Fry a few at a time for 2–3 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Drain on absorbent paper.

6
. Sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar or serve with Apple Maple Sauce. (To make Apple Maple Sauce, blend 2 cups applesauce with 1/3 cup maple syrup and 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon or mixed spices.) Serve immediately.

Yield: 4–6 servings

If you have kids who like to help out in the kitchen, this is a good recipe to get them interested in bread making. Nothing beats eating bready little doughnuts you have made yourself
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2½ cups sifted all-purpose flour

1½ teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ cup sugar

3 tablespoons butter, softened

1 egg

¼ cup apple juice or cider

¼ cup milk

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 medium apple (McIntosh, Golden Delicious, Empire)

2–4 cups vegetable oil for deep frying

1
. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Make a well in the center.

2
. In a small bowl, cream together the sugar and butter. Beat in the egg.

3
. Add the apple juice, milk, and vanilla. Beat all together. Pour into the center of the dry ingredients and stir until smooth.

4
. Peel, core, and finely chop the apple; stir into the batter.

5
. Cover and chill the dough for 1 hour.

6
. Place half of the dough on a floured board, knead lightly, and roll out to approximately 3/8-inch thick. Cut with a floured 2½-inch doughnut cutter.

7
. Heat the oil to 375°F in a wok or skillet. Fry the dough for 1–2 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Do not overcrowd. Drain on absorbent paper.

Yield: 20 doughnuts

Doughnuts may be dusted while warm. Sift 1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar with 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon, and sprinkle over the doughnuts.

You can buy all kinds of flavored scones commercially today. But they are so easy to make at home — my mother makes them several times a week for family and company. Vary the flavors, if you wish, by adding grated orange or lemon zest, or chopped crystallized ginger. You can also add ½ cup chopped walnuts or raisins without affecting the recipe
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3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

3/4 cup whole-wheat flour

¼ cup sugar

4 tablespoons butter

1 egg

¼ cup plain yogurt or buttermilk

1 large apple (McIntosh, Golden Delicious)

1
. Sift the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg into a large bowl. Add the whole-wheat flour and sugar and mix.

2
. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles large crumbs. Make a well in the center.

3
. Beat the egg and yogurt together in a small bowl.

4
. Peel, core, and finely chop the apple. Stir into the yogurt mixture.