Making the most of apples

Making the Most of Apples

If you're lucky enough to have mature apple trees in your garden, then harvesting and storing apples is one of the real treats of autumn. While planting an apple orchard takes time to bear fruit and must be considered a long-term investment, it's so worth it, and will give you delicious fruit for years to come.

Making the most of this seasonal bounty means collecting the apples that have fallen to the ground too. These are known as windfall apples, and though some of them may be partially bruised or rotten, they can still be processed into apple cider vinegar. In fact, windfall apples are even better for fermentation, as they already contain natural yeasts that help the process along.

Here are some key tips on how to store and process apples:

1. Apples collected from the ground are good for cooking with, but not so good for storing, as they will rot more easily.

1. Late harvest apples – those harvested in late September and October – are the best types to store. Apples that ripen in the summer won't store very well and are best eaten off the tree.

1. Ripe apples should be easy to remove from the tree. Just give them a couple of twists and they'll come away.

1. To store apples, wrap them in newspaper and put them in a box and store that somewhere dry and cool. Check them every now and again. If you notice any rotten patches, remove them quickly so the rot doesn't spread.

If you want to preserve your apples, some great recipe options include:

• Dried apple rings, made using a dehydrator
• Apple purees
• Apple butter
• Pickles and chutney