Perhaps it’s just because I grew up in Washington state, but I love apples and with autumn blowing in this weekend, apple season is definitely upon us. According to the Washington Apple Commission, more than half of all apples grown in the United States for fresh eating come from orchards in Washington state. There’s nothing like the crunch of a cold Granny Smith apple. Yum.
When we lived in the East Bay area of northern California, we would trek up to the Sierra foothills outside of Sacramento to Apple Hill. Local growers there would have not only apples for sale, but everything apple one could want: apple pies, apple tarts, apple sauce, apple themed tchotchkes, etc. There were lots of activities for kids like petting zoos and pumpkin carving as well as shopping opportunities from small vendors for arts and crafts. We would spend the day there, but one could easily spend a week exploring and eating their way across Apple Hill.
One year, we came upon a catapult built and manned by a local Boy Scout troop. We could pay a few dollars for some pumpkins and launch them from the catapult and try to get them into several horribly battered trashcans we could move around across a field. Randy loved this. I think the only thing that could have made the experience more fun would have been if the catapult were a trebuchet instead.
In honor of apple season, here is one of my favorite apple recipes which is also easy to prepare. It’s delicious especially à la mode.
Apple Impromptu 4 cups apples – peeled, cored & sliced ¼ cup sugar ¼ teaspoon cinnamon ¾ cup sugar ¾ cup butter, softened 1 egg 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla ¾ cup flour ¾ teaspoon baking powder
Preheat oven to 400F. Arrange apples in a 9-inch greased pan. Sprinkle with ¼ cup sugar and ¼ teaspoon cinnamon. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake 20 minutes.
In a bowl, cream ¾ cup sugar and butter. Add egg and vanilla. Beat well. Stir in flour and baking powder. Spread over baked apples.
Bake 20-25 minutes until brown. Cool 5 -10 minutes before serving.