BC MacIntosh apples were in the store today for 49¢ a pound. This seems kind of early (corn is still 5 for a dollar!), but then, that is the theme of the summer.
In any case… I'm happy to be reminded that fall is harvest season, too. Being too busy to put things in jars right at the end of summer has been torturous, even though I've only been strict with my work schedule for about a week now. Truly, canning is addictive, if I'm being a freak about one week of withdrawal. I really think that for me it has to do with the lifting of all the usual restrictions on stashing. The whole point of putting things in jars is building a giant stash of preserved food in the pantry! How can I not get completely obsessed with having enough jars of preserved food?
But, before this entry goes completely over to the Feelings category, I think I will dry some apple rings in honour of the 49¢ bounty.
Having consulted The Apple Journal (of course there is an apple journal!) and discovered that they acknowledge fanaticism about varieties, I feel ok giving in to my family's traditional love of the MacIntosh for all uses. I don't think people usually dry macs, but I was raised to hail the mac as the supreme apple. (Granny Smith is only for pie! Golden Delicious is only for sauce! Mac is for everything!) I've lately gone over to the Fuji/Braeburn team for fresh eating, but I still have an instinctive respect for MacIntosh apples.
Bex and Galen have heard my granny give the geneology of all common apples. They can vouch for my apple-brainwashing.
I think the good thing about drying will be that it doesn't require much tending— I can theoretically get work done while the apples are drying.
Posted by Sarah at August 25, 2004 11:36 PM