Apple

How to store Apple

For most apple varieties, the ripening process is all about the conversion of starch to sugar; they get sweeter up to a point, but then the textures worsens and they lose moisture becoming soft and wooly.

Store at room temperature if you’ll be eating them within 2-3 days, for the best flavour. If you need them to last longer, keep them in the fridge. Wash well, then chop or slice,

Easy ideas

1. Salad

Raw apple will always add a nice sharp, crisp addition to a salad. Slice them, dice them or cut into neat matchsticks or wedges, the shape is up to you. Try a simple salad of fennel, apple and hazelnuts with a sharp lemony dressing, or some boiled beetroots, apple and diced celery dressed with soured cream and dill. They will be at home in an eclectic slaw and even as part of a celeriac remoulade.

2. Pudding

Stewed or baked, an apple will soften and sweeten in a relatively short time. Apple crumble is the obvious example, diced and thrown with a little sugar and warming spice. A baked apple is an often overlooked classic; core your apples and stuff the void with a mix of sultanas, oats, honey and spice. Top with a little butter and a sprinkle of sugar, bake for about 20 mins at 180˚C/Gas 4. A French tarte tatin is the apex of apple puddings, a deceptively simple looking tart requiring meticulous method; the internet is abound with recipes and comment on the subject.

3. Savoury

Apples are a perfect partner with pork or duck as the sharpness cuts through the fat. Serve them as a stewed apple sauce with a few flecks of thyme or slice thickly and bake them beneath your roasting joint. They complement a strong salty cheddar; on a cheese board, in a toastie or sometimes in a pie, as is the tradition up North. Don’t overlook their value in a simple soup; used sparingly they add something to a celery, beetroot, cauliflower or squash soup, amongst others.