Apples | Gourmandistan

Fried Pie Face-off: Neal vs. Egerton

November 9, 2013 by Steve

Fried dried-fruit pie is one of those foods that everyone loves to argue about because nobody can find the “real thing” anymore. Michelle remembers her parents debating, decades ago, the merits of pies her dad would bring home from country stores all over Western Kentucky. It seems they were never quite as good as they remembered their mothers making. Then chains like McDonald’s and Popeye’s started offering their own versions, trans-fats took over, and the “real thing” became even harder […]

Categories: Apples, Cooking, Food, Fruit Desserts, Old cookbooks, Pies & Tarts, Recipes

Apple Crisp with Candied Ginger and Dried Cherries gives Ahab a break.

October 29, 2013 by Steve

Every Fall for nearly a decade, when the apples are in season, Michelle returns to the hunt for perfecting the Caramelized Apple Cake in Susan Herrmann Loomis’ Cooking at Home on Rue Tatin. It has become her obsession. Loomis describes the cake as “dense and buttery with a pure flavor.” Michelle would possibly describe it as “all that most maddens and torments; all that stirs up the lees of things; all truth with malice in it; all that cracks the […]

Categories: Apples, Cooking, Food, Fruit Desserts, Recipes, Vegetarian

Calvados overdose: Calvados Ice Cream with Apple Calvados Compote (now with bonus Calvados!)

November 3, 2012 by Steve

Those Norman French sure love their apple brandy. A sidebar next to this recipe in Susan Herrmann Loomis’ French Farmhouse Cookbook lists seven rounds of Calvados served at the end of old-school Norman meals, including the coup de pied au cul or “kick in the ass.” Gourmandistan’s recent relocation to Normandy saw us imbibe several shots throughout many meals, some as apéritifs and some in desserts, but never seven in one sitting. (Steve would not have fared well, as Steve […]

Categories: Apples, Cooking, Food, France, Fruit, Ice cream, Recipes, Vegetarian

An “au revoir/auf wiedersehen” to apples

December 4, 2011 by Michelle

Steve has probably purchased his last batch of local apples for the year, and since he snacks on several per day (there are many, many doctors out there, after all) he’ll soon be buying what he calls “crapples” at the grocery. Michelle, however, has higher standards, and refuses to cook with the flown- and trucked-in Braeburns, Fujis or sappy-sweet HoneyCrisps that Steve brings home. While that means Tarte Tatin and apple clafoutis must wait until next fall, Michelle recently managed […]

Categories: Apples, Cooking, Food, France, Fruit Desserts, Nuts, Pies & Tarts, Recipes

Halve a tart, save an apple.

November 18, 2010 by Steve

Winter is slowly, inexorably grinding its way into Gourmandistan, and our supply of local crops is dwindling. We’ve been told there are only a couple of more weeks left for local apples. While we have them, we’re occasionally enjoying one of our favorite desserts, tarte Tatin—or, as we make it, half a tarte Tatin. This tart takes a fairly long time to make, because the apples need to slowly caramelize over low heat before going into the oven. Steve contributes […]

Categories: Apples, Cooking, Food, France, Fruit Desserts, Pies & Tarts, Recipes

Amis and apple clafoutis

October 10, 2010 by Steve

Apples are one of Gourmandistan’s favorite fruits, especially now that, through vigorous research in several countries, we’ve honed in on a few favorites. We’re big fans of crisp, tart apples (although Steve, in a pinch, will eat just about any apple). In France, we prefer thick-skinned Boskoop or Canada varieties. In the U.S., we love GoldRush, developed at Indiana’s Purdue University and grown in large quantities at nearby Huber’s Orchard. Steve will happily gnaw his way through several a day, […]

Categories: Apples, Cooking, Food, France, Fruit Desserts, Recipes, Vegetarian

Gourmandistan

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Category Archives: Apples