Apples

One of the most popular fruits in the world is the apple. It’s a delicious and healthy snack that can be eaten raw, baked, or cooked into a pie.

Apples come in many different shapes and colours, but they all have one thing in common: they’re tasty!

How To Prepare Apples

Whether you are eating apple raw or preparing it to cook, you can choose whether to leave the skin on or not.

If you want to peel the skin, use a vegetable peeler to help only remove the skin and not the flesh.

You can also use an apple corer to remove the core and pips.

Popular Apple Uses

Raw

Apples are a simple, healthy snack. Whether you eat them whole or slice them up to add to a lunchbox, they provide the perfect amount of sweetness and crunch.

Raw apple can be grated and added to breakfast cereals, including muesli and granola.

Red apples are typically used raw and chopped in the famous Waldorf Salad, featuring mayonnaise and walnuts.

To stop chopped apples from turning brown, add a squeeze of lemon juice.

Baking With Apples

Many different baking recipes encompass apples, including apple crumble, apple pie, and baked apples.

Different types of apple varieties lend themselves to cooking, with Bramley Apples being the most popular. However, other apple types that are suitable for cooking include Golden Delicious, Granny Smith and Gala.

Stewing Apples

Stewed apples are the perfect addition to add some extra flavour and comfort to a recipe. Stewed apple tastes excellent on top of porridge, ice cream or when stirred into some mashed potato.

How To Choose The Best Apples

Whether choosing apples at the supermarket or picking them from an apple tree, check them over for any bruising or blemishes. Make sure they are firm and not soft to the touch.

How To Store Apples

Apples that are going to be eaten within a few days can be stored in a fruit bowl. But if you want to store apples for a little longer, then you should keep them in the fridge.

For long term storage of apples, especially if you are lucky enough to have your own apple tree to pick from, you should wrap up each apple in some newspaper and store them somewhere dry and dark.

How To Freeze Apples

If you have an apple tree and your apples are ripe, you can freeze some for later use.

Firstly wash the apples and cut them into slices or quarters depending on how big they are. Soak in lemon juice for 10 minutes.

Lay the apple pieces out onto baking paper and place them in a freezer until frozen (a few hours) before transferring to a freezer bag.

Freeze as soon as possible and keep for up to 6 months.

Growing Apples

Different apples grow on different trees, with most being a standard apple tree that can bear fruit after 5-7 years. Some rarer varieties are dwarf and need around three years before they can bear fruit.