With help from Bill Mackintosh of Mackintosh Fruit Farm in Berryville, we cooked up an apple pie graph to help you bake, can, simmer, press and enjoy some of Virginia’s best fruit.
By Katerina Patin
1. CIDER
Honey Crisp: This top-selling apple has been reeling in a whole new slew of apple lovers with its sought-after taste. But it’s also making waves for other reasons; the fruit’s pinkish-red blush makes a great light-colored cider and its acid and sugar combination means you don’t need a blend of apples for a great tasting, balanced cider.
2. CAN
York: Whether you’re canning or pickling apples, York will keep its shape even in the jammiest preserve
3. SAUCE
Ida Red: Its flaming-red color makes a delightfully pink-colored sauce.
Stayman: The fruit’s sweet-tart balance makes a tasty sauce that’s naturally low on sugar.
4. BAKE
Rome: A snappy-tart tasting apple, the Rome is low in sugar and the perfect ingredient for a (less) guilt-free pie.
Nittany: This cross between a Golden Delicious and a York is the best of both worlds for a sweet-tangy taste that bakes well and keeps the apple’s creamy yellow color so fillings look best. Feeling thirsty after your pie? This apple makes some great juice too.
Granny Smith: This cross between a Golden Delicious and a York is the best of both worlds for a sweet-tangy taste that bakes well and keeps the apple’s creamy yellow color so fillings look best. Feeling thirsty after your pie? This apple makes some With its signature tart taste, the Granny Smith is a perfect complement to balance out a sweet pie.
5. SNACK
Fuji: With a 3-plus inch diameter and a juicy sweet taste, the Fuji makes a satisfying snack that gives you an alternative source for a sugar-rush.
Winesap: This green apple has a faint red blush and a flavor that only gets better with age. Acidic apples, like this one, tend to mellow off-branch; It will be even better next March than it was this October.
Mutsu: This apple not only has two names, its alias is “Crispin,” but is also the father of a rather large and sugary-sweet apple named Golden Delicious. Not to be outshone by its progeny, the Mutsu may not be as sweet, but its sharper tastes makes it a more interesting, and more healthy, snacking favorite.
Cameo: A newer apple on the scene, this `80s child is a great tasty fall replacement for the popular snacking Gala apple which is, unfortunately, only an early bloomer.
(October 2012)
margouillat photo/Shutterstock.com (Crust); rgotstar/Shutterstock.com (Apples); anatema/Shutterstock.com (Pie); Margaret I. Wallace/Shutterstock.com (Apple Sauce); Graham Taylor Photography/Shutterstock.com (Canned Apples); Yero Photo studio/Shutterstock.com (Cider)
