Chapter 3

Apple Drinks & Snacks

“An apple a day keeps the doctor away.” So the old saying goes. If that’s the case, you can feel healthy and food smart whenever you snack on an apple or pour yourself a drink of cider or apple juice. If you are looking for something a little more elaborate, think of apple tea, punch, or wassail for a special drink. Substitute apple slices for crackers, bread, or chips. No matter how you serve them, apples are tasty and refreshing.

Iced Apple Tea

Yield: 6 cups

I love green teas, particularly those flavored with honey, lemon, or mint. I choose basic, unflavored green tea, however, when making iced tea because I enjoy using my own flavorings. Adding apple juice turns it into a drink that is reminiscent of the apple teas, both hot and cold, served in Turkey.

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. 1. Place the tea bags in a pitcher and cover with the boiling water. Allow to steep for 5 minutes.
  2. 2. Squeeze the tea bags gently and discard. Stir in the honey, if desired, until dissolved. Stir in the apple juice. Chill (or add a couple of ice cubes to each glass).
  3. 3. Pour into four tall glasses and drop a slice of lemon and a sprig of mint into each.

Freezing Cider

Cider freezes well. If you have space in your freezer, you might consider buying extra of your favorite fresh sweet cider in the fall to carry you through until the orchards reopen.

Triple Apple, Fruit & Veg Shake

Yield: about 6 cups

With so many thick, puréed fruit and vegetable drinks available today, it’s not so difficult to achieve the recommended daily servings of these foods. Try your hand at making your own drinks; it’s far less expensive than buying smoothies and green drinks. Whatever you mix up in your kitchen will not have the same shelf life as a commercial product, so drink it up in two to three days.

Ingredients

Instructions

Place the apples, bananas, kiwis, pineapple, spinach, ­avocado, applesauce, apple juice, orange juice, and honey to taste in a large blender and purée until completely smooth. Taste and adjust to your palate with additional banana and/or honey. To thin, add more apple juice or orange juice, or 6 to 10 ice cubes.

Fresh Apple & Mango Smoothie

Yield: about 5 cups

When I was running kids’ camps at my farm, my assistant, Melanie, would freeze bananas and strawberries before she left for home. The next day she would blend fruit and yogurt smoothies and hand them out for a midmorning snack break. This one was always a favorite.

Ingredients

Instructions

Place the apple, banana, mango, strawberries, honey to taste, milk, yogurt, and ice cubes in a blender and purée until smooth.

Apple Cocktails

Pineapples have long been a symbol of hospitality, and they team well with apples for a refreshing punch. If pineapple is not available, orange segments and juice would be a nice substitute. Orange juice would also be a good swap for the lemon juice in the Apple Cider Sidecar from Patty Power at Distillery Lane Ciderworks.

Party Apple Punch

Yield: about 6 cups

Instructions

  1. 1. Peel and core the pineapple. Coarsely chop the fruit and place it in a large saucepan. If you are using canned pineapple, drain the juice, reserving 1 cup for step 2.
  2. 2. Add the apples to the pan along with the sparkling cider, apple juice, and pineapple juice. Heat over low heat for 5 to 10 minutes, or until steaming. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the liquor. Let the mixture cool slightly and pour into a punch bowl or pitcher. Serve warm or cold, with or without the fruit.

The Apple Cider Sidecar

Yield: 4 servings

Instructions

  1. 1. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice and pour in the cider, Cointreau, brandy, and lemon juice. Shake well.
  2. 2. Pour some sugar onto a small plate. Moisten the rims of 4 martini glasses with the lemon halves. Dip the rims into the sugar, and strain the cocktails into the sugar-rimmed martini glasses.

Apple Eggnog

Yield: 7 cups (about 18 servings)

To avoid the possible problem of salmonella, it’s wise to avoid using raw eggs. The easiest way to do this is to use a pasteurized egg product if you can’t find commercial whole pasteurized eggs.

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. 1. Place the egg product in a large punch bowl and beat until frothy. Add the sugar and beat until well incorporated and frothy. Beat in the brandy and rum, a little at a time, then the apple juice. Continue beating and add 1 cup of the cream. Beat for several minutes, or until the mixture thickens somewhat.
  2. 2. In a medium bowl, beat the remaining 2 cups heavy cream until almost stiff. Stir into the brandy and cream mixture.
  3. 3. Sprinkle the nutmeg over the top. Serve at once.

Wassail

Yield: 4 servings

An old Twelfth Night tradition, this medieval drink of wassail (from the Old Norse ves heill, meaning “Be well,” a salutation offered when presenting a cup of wine to a guest), or “lamb’s wool,” as it is also known, is still served in some English homes around Christmas. It is sometimes served with a spoon for eating the baked apple that flavors the beverage.

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
  2. 2. Slit the skins of the apples horizontally about halfway down. Place in a greased baking dish and sprinkle with the 1⁄4 cup brown sugar and the apple juice. Bake, basting frequently, for about 40 minutes, or until the apples are soft. Remove from the oven. Set out four large mugs and spoon one apple into each.
  3. 3. Pour the ale and sherry into a large saucepan. Stir in the 2 tablespoons brown sugar, the cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and lemon zest. Cook over low heat for 5 minutes.
  4. 4. Pour the warm liquids over the apples. When the wassail has been consumed, take a spoon and eat the apple, if desired.

Apple & Sausage Bundles

Yield: approximately 24 bundles (6 servings)

This is my mother’s adaptation of an Indonesian recipe that calls for chicken livers. She preferred the texture and flavor of sausage. I like to use spicy Cajun or andouille sausage or sometimes a milder chicken and apple sausage. They are all good with the crunchy apple slices.

Marinade

Sausage Bundles

Instructions

  1. 1. For the marinade, put the apple juice, peanut butter, soy sauce, cinnamon, and ginger in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Pour into a medium bowl.
  2. 2. For the sausage bundles, cut the sausages into 1-inch pieces. Add to the marinade, cover, and refrigerate for 30 minutes or longer.
  3. 3. Peel and core the apples and cut them into the same number of slices as there are sausage pieces. (The slices should not be thinner than 1⁄4 inch.)
  4. 4. Remove the sausage pieces and drain, reserving the marinade.
  5. 5. Cut the bacon strips in half crosswise. Make bundles by wrapping a strip of bacon around a slice of apple and a piece of sausage. Secure with wooden toothpicks. Drop each bundle into the bowl to coat with the marinade.
  6. 6. Place the bacon bundles on a broiler rack and broil 4 inches from the heat. Broil approximately 3 minutes per side, watching them carefully and turning them until the bacon is uniformly cooked and crispy.

Onion & Apple Samosas

Yield: 24 samosas

Make these savory turnovers with basic short-crust pastry or thawed purchased puff pastry — they’re delicious either way.

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. 1. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Lightly grease two baking sheets or line them with parchment paper.
  2. 2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garam masala and stir to combine. Sauté for 5 minutes. Stir in the apples and sauté for 5 minutes, then stir in the brown sugar. Reduce the heat to medium and cook until the mixture is golden and somewhat caramelized, about 15 minutes.
  3. 3. Stir in the vinegar and cook 5 minutes longer. Remove from the heat and allow the mixture to cool.
  4. 4. Remove the puff pastry from the refrigerator and roll out two of the 9- by 91⁄2-inch sheets to 12 by 12 inches. Prick the sheets all over with a fork. Cut 12 squares from each sheet (the squares will be about 3 by 4 inches) and place 12 on each baking sheet.
  5. 5. Place 2 to 3 tablespoons of the filling in the center of the 12 squares. Take care not to overfill the squares. Sprinkle about 2 teaspoons cheese over the filling.
  6. 6. Cover the filled squares with the remaining squares and, using the tines of a fork, firmly seal the edges. Cut a slit in the top of each samosa.
  7. 7. Repeat the rolling and filling process with the remaining two pastry sheets.
  8. 8. Refrigerate or freeze for 15 minutes so that the dough is cool and firm before going into the hot oven. Bake on upper and middle racks for 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden and puffed. After 15 minutes, rotate the baking sheets from upper to middle rack and from back to front.

Apple Snacks

Forget the bread, crackers, and cookies — substitute apple rings instead. Topped with a variety of spreads, cheeses, and meats, they provide a welcome change on the hors d’oeuvre platter. They are particularly successful with children and health-conscious adults. Topping ideas are described below.

Instructions

Wash and core apples and cut into 1⁄4-inch to 1⁄2-inch slices. Use Ginger Gold or Cameo apples, which are naturally slow to brown. Sprinkle the slices with lemon juice or drop them into a bowl of cold water with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. Remove and pat dry with paper towels.

Depending on whether you are making snacks, lunch, or hors d’oeuvres, choose from among the following toppings:

Have an Apple, Cheese, and Wine Party

Many a time, the urge to throw a party has been quashed by the thought of all the preparation involved. One of the easiest ways to resolve this is to choose an apple, cheese, and wine theme. Accompany the apples, cheeses, and wines with an assortment of crusty breads, water biscuits, and crackers.

Buy a good selection of fresh, firm apples, and then choose the cheeses and wines. Identify each apple variety and stack them in baskets next to complementary cheeses and wines. Here are some suggestions:

  • Golden Delicious or York apples with Edam, mild cheddar, Camembert, or Brie. Drink Médoc or Beaujolais red wines.
  • Jonathan or Braeburn apples with Scottish Dunlop (cheddar), Gruyère, or provolone. Drink Bardolino or Valpolicella red wines, or Orvieto or Vouvray white wines.
  • Empire or Gala apples with Muenster, Fontina, or Bel Paese. Drink Soave white or rosé wines.
  • Macoun or Honeycrisp apples with Caprice des Dieux, Excelsior, or Boursault. Drink Moselle, Graves, or Pouilly white wines, or Côte de Beaune red wines.

Apple-Cheese Spread

Yield: 21⁄2 cups

In this recipe I use low-fat cream cheese because I find there is little to distinguish its flavor or texture from that of the whole-fat version, but I do use freshly grated, full-fat cheddar, because I prefer the rich nutty flavor. If you have fresh herbs, substitute 1 tablespoon of chopped herbs for each teaspoon of dried.

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. 1. In a large bowl, combine the cream cheese, cheddar, and brandy. Beat until smooth. Add the apple, basil, oregano, thyme, and pepper, and stir until completely combined.
  2. 2. Spoon the mixture into a crock or small serving dish. Cover and chill for approximately 1 hour. Serve on toast points or crackers.

Low-Fat Options

Just as low-fat cream cheese works well in this Apple-Cheese Spread, it can be substituted in recipes throughout this book. However, do not substitute fat-free cream cheese; the texture is totally different and it is difficult to blend. You can also use low-fat or reduced-fat mayonnaise, milk, sour cream, and yogurt.

Apples for Good Health

Researchers in Britain, Finland, France, and the United States continue to make new findings relating to the benefits of eating apples and drinking apple juice.

According to a 24-year study by Finland’s National Public Health Institute, diets rich in flavonoids, particularly the flavonoid quercetin from apples, are associated with a 46 percent reduced risk of developing cancer. Cornell University researchers reported that apple phyto­nutrients inhibited the growth of colon and liver cancers in laboratory studies.

Other long-term studies by Finnish researchers found that the quercetin in apples and onions was directly associated with the lowest risk of coronary mortality and that individuals who ate the most apples had the lowest risk of thrombotic stroke.

A 2008 study by the Université Montpellier in France found that apples and apple juice may have cardiovascular protective properties similar to those in grapes and grape juice. Both fruits appear to reduce atherosclerosis, a hardening of the arteries that can lead to stroke or heart attack. The results also suggest that processing the fruit into juice might actually increase the bioavailability of the antioxidant phytonutrients found in whole apples and grapes.

A five-year study conducted by British researchers found that people who eat several apples a week have better lung function than those who don’t eat apples. Another recent study concluded that children who drink apple juice daily are not as likely to suffer from breathing problems. Researchers believe that the flavonoids and phenolic acids in apples help relieve asthma symptoms by calming inflammation and improving lung function.

In a University of Massachusetts–Lowell study, researchers concluded that apples and apple juice may protect against Alzheimer’s and other age-related illnesses.

Prosciutto Apple Wedges

Yield: 32 wedges

A quick and delicious hors d’oeuvre, these wedges also make a wonderful and ever-so-easy first course. Depending on what follows, count on 2 or 3 wedges per person.

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. 1. Brush each cut surface of the apples with lemon juice. Spread the cream cheese thinly on each cut side.
  2. 2. Wrap a thin slice of prosciutto around each wedge. Serve immediately or refrigerate. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before serving.

Apple Thoughts

They [apples] must be eaten in the fields, when your system is all aglow with exercise, when the frosty weather nips your fingers, the wind rattles the bare boughs or rustles the few remaining leaves, and the jay is heard screaming around. What is sour in the house a bracing walk makes sweet.

— Henry David Thoreau, from his Journal