At the end of the press day, we always find runaway apples that managed to avoid the fate of their fellows. Though destined for the grinder, these apples manage to roll away and hide under apple bins, behind rice hull bags, and in between the wheels of the carefully-guarded lab cart. After breathing in apple mist for an entire day, no one on the press team ever seems to want to eat these apples or to take them home. So I am left with a small bounty of apples that need to be turned into something – and quickly.
My go-to use for runaways is an imprecise “stew” that varies depending on the quantity of apples at my disposal and the content of my refrigerator. This isn’t really a proper stew; I just like the name. There are good, better, and best variations. Read the recipe below knowing that some ingredients may change and the result can still be delicious at end of a cold fall harvest day. This can also be adapted to a slow cooker, but I like the hands on version better. Happy stewing!
Ingredients
- • 2 cups sliced onions, sweet yellow onions are best but don’t beat yourself up over this
- • 1 clove garlic, pressed or minced
- • 2 tablespoons butter
- • 2 tablespoons flour or all-purpose gluten-free flour
- • 3/4 cup diced celery – or 1 teaspoon-ish celery seed
- • 4 cups peeled and coarsely chopped apples, tannic apples are best, like Winesaps or Albemarle Pippins, but again use what you have
- • 1 cup of a tannic cider, such as Charred Ordinary
- • Chicken stock
- • Salt and pepper to taste
- • ¼ cup of fortified cider such as Harvest Ration
- • Grated cheddar cheese
- • Crusty bread
Steps
- 1. In a large pot, sauté the onions and garlic in butter until they are golden. Maybe 20 minutes on medium high. Add the flour and stir it until it is combined and cooked through.
- 2. Add celery/celery seed, apples and cider to pot and keep stirring until apples start to soften. Another 20-ish minutes.
- 3. Add enough chicken stock to just cover the apple/onions. Add salt and pepper and simmer until apples begin to break down. 20-30 minutes.
- 4. Stir in fortified cider and continue simmering until the alcohol evaporates. About 10 minutes.
- 5. Serve with cheddar cheese grated on top and crusty bread on the side.
This is nice by itself, if you’re in a rush, or served with pork/prosciutto and warm squash/pumpkin slices for a full meal.
-Courtney Mailey
