AN APPLE TIME OF YEAR

 

While summer temperatures have lingered way into October in much of Spain, the produce in the markets announces that autumn has arrived. Apples--their scent, their colors, the sweetness--are the pregoneros, or heralds, of the season. 

Spain occupies a middling position in European production of apples. Poland is far and away the market leader with Italy and France a distant second and third. Although Asturias is famous for its more than 250 varieties of apples and the cider made from them, the region is way down at the bottom of the list of commercial apple growers in Spain. The province of Lleida in Catalonia is the biggest producer. 

To enjoy the season, here is a round-up of recipes that use apples, from salad and soup to fish and chops to, yes, desserts.

Colorful Waldorf salad with apples and beets.

Waldorf Salad with Apples and Beets (Ensalada de Manzanas y Remolacha). This is a colorful interpretation of that old favorite, Waldorf salad. There are two ways to go with this salad--either keep the beets separate from the apple and celery mix, then layer the salad, or go ahead and mix everything together, letting the red beets turn the apples pink. Either way, it’s a colorful addition to the autumn table. The recipe, along with more colorful autumnal salads, is at Four Salads for Fall.

Smooth pumpkin soup, crisp apples to garnish.

Pumpkin Soup with Apple (Sopa de Calabaza con Manzana). This soup makes an elegant starter for a holiday dinner. The apple is in the garnish, but you could cook it with the soup as well. You can change this soup by swapping the finishing touches. Add color with a swirl of red pepper puree. Add texture with pomegranate seeds or toasted almonds. Make it richer with a dollop of Greek yogurt or cream. Turn it into a delightful vegetarian main-course meal by adding cooked brown rice and grated cheese. Get the pumpkin soup recipe here.

Apples with vegetables, pine nuts on top.

Vegetable Medley (Alboronía). This is a Sevilla version of a very traditional dish of stewed eggplant with squash, with the unusual addition of chopped apples. It would make a fine side dish with roast meat or poultry or, finished in the oven with eggs and pine nuts, a superb vegetarian entrée. The recipe for this vegetable dish is here.

No actual apples--cider in the sauce.

Hake in Apple Cider Sauce (Merluza con Sidra). Apple cider from Asturias can be used in cooking exactly as white wine. It’s tangy and dry, perfect with fish. Besides hake, try it with salmon. Use cider also in beef stew or braised chicken. Try a pan of chorizo baked with cider. More about cider and the hake recipe at Intro to Cooking with Cider.

Chopped apples, apricots, nuts in the stuffing.

Roast Chicken with Pork-Apple-Pine Nut Stuffing (Pollo Asado Relleno con Carne y Frutos Secos). This is a Catalan stuffing recipe, with ground pork or sausage, dried fruits and nuts as well as apple, to stuff a good-sized bird—at least 5 pounds. Medium-dry Sherry adds subtle background flavor to the stuffing and the pan juices. Get the recipe Stuff a Chicken Right Now.

Medium Sherry creates the sauce for pork chops with apple slices.

Pork Chops with Apples and Sherry (Chuletas de Cerdo con Manzana y Oloroso Seco)

Thick-cut ibérico pork chops are seared then finished in a covered pan with sliced apples. Medium Sherry to deglaze the pan creates a delicious sauce. Get the pork chop recipe here.

Baked apple with sweet wine, nuts, and figs.

Stuffed Apples Baked with Málaga Wine (Manzanas Asadas con Vino Málaga). The cored apples are stuffed with walnuts and figs, then baked in raisiny Málaga wine. Use any favorite apple variety. Firm Granny Smith apples keep their shape best. Fujis add a spicy touch. The baked apples are good served with a dollop of creamy Greek yogurt. The recipe for baked apples is on this site, Málaga Wine is a Sweet Secret.

Cake with apples and raisins.

Apple Cake with Honey-Wine Syrup (Biscocho de Manzana con Sirope de Miel). Apples, raisins, a bit of sweet Málaga wine plus sweet spices such as cinnamon and allspice make a sugar-free cake that is delightfully sweet. A pouring syrup of honey and sweet wine accompanies the cake. The recipes for the cake and syrup are here.

Apple crumble made with olive oil, almonds.

Apple-Almond Olive Oil Crumble (Crumble con Manzanas y Almendras). The crumbly topping for sweet apples is made with almonds, oats and olive oil. So good with scoops of cinnamon ice cream! The recipe for apple crumble is at Baking with Olive Oil.

Apple Tart with raisins, pine nuts and honey glaze.

Apple Tart (Tarta de Manzana). Last week a Málaga pastry shop, Daza, won the apple tart competition at San Sebastian Gastronomika, Spain’s top professional event. The winning tart has an all-butter puff pastry, a creamy, vanilla-infused pastry cream and caramelized apples on top. (The recipe for the winning tart is here.) My rendition might not win any prizes, but is quick and easy to put together. Packaged puff pastry (hojaldre) needs no rolling out. The cinnamon-infused pastry cream can be made a day in advance, so the tart comes together in the time it takes to slice the apples. My apple tart recipe is at this site Pop This Tart in the Oven.