It's Time To Cook With Apples

Now is the peak time for freshly harvested apples. So in The Early Show's Five-Minute Cooking School with Williams-Sonoma, cookbook author Tori Ritchie teaches about apples.

The most common varieties available are Granny Smith, Gala, McIntosh, Golden Delicious and Red Delicious, but there is a boom in heirloom varietals, too. The rest of the year, you buy either imported apples from New Zealand and Australia or ones that have been in cold storage, which is why the best time to cook with apples is now.

The general rule is the firmer and tarter the apple, like Granny Smith, the better it is to cook, and the sweeter the variety, like Gala, the better to eat out of hand. But, at this time of year, when apples are really crisp and not mushy, you can cook with almost any variety. The only one that Ritchie doesn't recommend is a Red Delicious.

The following are her recipes:

Apple-Citrus Salad With Avocado And Bacon
A wonderful beginning to a special-occasion meal, this salty-sweet salad is sure to enliven the palate.

Ingredients:
2 Tbs. Dijon mustard
1/4 cup cider vinegar
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 heads Bibb lettuce, rinsed well and torn into 2-inch pieces
2 Granny Smith apples, cored and cut into 1/2-inch dice
2 ruby red grapefruits, peeled and sectioned
2 oranges, peeled and sectioned
1 bunch green onions, green portion only, chopped
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
3 ripe avocados
6 thick-cut bacon slices, fried until crispy and chopped into 1/2-inch pieces

Method:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the mustard and vinegar. Add the olive oil in a slow, steady stream and whisk until smooth and blended.
2. In a large bowl, combine the lettuce, apples, grapefruits, oranges, green onions, salt, pepper and half of the vinaigrette and toss to mix.
3. To slice the avocados, using a chef's knife, cut into an avocado lengthwise until you hit the pit in the center. Carefully cut around the fruit through the skin and the pulp, without cutting through the pit. Holding the avocado in both hands, twist the halves in opposite directions to separate them. Using a large tablespoon, scoop out the pit and then scoop the pulp out of the skin. Slice the avocado as desired. Repeat with the remaining avocados.
4. Divide the salad among chilled salad plates. Garnish with the avocado slices and bacon. Drizzle a little of the remaining vinaigrette over each salad and serve immediately. Serves 12.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
4 good-quality red apples such as Fuji, Braeburn, McIntosh or Rome Beauty
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 Tbs. unsalted butter at room temperature
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup apple juice

Method:

1. Heat an oven to 350ºF. Spread the walnuts on a baking sheet and toast in the oven until lightly browned and fragrant, about 7 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.
2. Working from the stem end, use a melon baller to remove the core from each apple, scooping out the stem and seeds and making a deep hole for the filling; work to within about 1/2 inch of the bottom of the apple. Peel the skin from the top half of each apple.
3. In a small bowl, blend together the brown sugar, butter and cinnamon. Mix in the walnuts. Spoon equal amounts of the filling into the centers of the apples. Set the filled apples in an 8-inch square baking pan or other baking pan just large enough to hold them snugly.
4. In a small pan over medium heat, warm the honey with the apple juice, stirring until the honey dissolves. Pour around the apples. Spoon some of the liquid over the sides of the apples to moisten them, but do not spoon over the tops.
5. Bake, basting the sides once or twice with the pan juices, until the apples are tender when pierced, about 40 minutes. Remove from the oven, let cool and serve in bowls with the pan juices spooned over the tops. Serves 4.

Apple Galette
A galette is a rustic, free-form tart that is cooked on a baking sheet rather than in a tart pan. It can be prepared with a variety of seasonal fruits.

For the dough:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1 Tbs. sugar
16 Tbs. (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/3 to 1/2 cup ice water

For the filling:
2 lb. apples, such as Granny Smith or Jonagold, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch slices
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 Tbs. cornstarch
1 egg, lightly beaten
Sugar for sprinkling
1/4 cup apricot jam
Lightly sweetened whipped cream for serving

Method:

1. To make the dough, put the flour, salt and sugar in a bowl. Put the butter in another bowl and place both bowls in the freezer for 10 minutes.
2. Transfer the flour mixture in a food processor and pulse about 5 times to blend. Add the butter and pulse 15 to 20 times, until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add 1/3 cup of the water and pulse twice. Squeeze the dough with your fingers; it should hold together but should not be sticky. If it is crumbly, add more water 1 Tbs. at a time, pulsing twice after each addition.
3. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, gather into a ball and flatten into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
4. Place a baking sheet on the bottom rack of an oven. Position another rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 400°F. Line a second baking sheet with a Silpat nonstick liner and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
5. To make the filling, in a large bowl, stir together the apples, sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and cornstarch. Set aside.
6. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and let stand for 5 minutes. Place the dough between 2 sheets of lightly floured waxed paper and roll out into a 12-inch round. Brush off the excess flour. Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
7. Arrange the apple filling in the center of the dough, mounding the fruit slightly and leaving a 2-inch border. Gently fold the edges of the dough over the apples, pleating loosely. Brush the dough with the beaten egg. Lightly sprinkle sugar over the apples.
8. Bake until the crust is golden and the apples are tender, about 1 hour. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let the galette cool completely, about 1 hour.
9. Just before serving, in a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the jam. Brush the apples with the jam and let cool. Cut the galette into 8 slices and accompany each slice with a dollop of whipped cream. Serves 8.