Hopping the Apple Train

I spent most of the chilly morning on Saturday at the Minneapolis farmer's market. I sat huddled around a propane heater with three lovely Midwestern ladies, we were chatting live on AM950 talk radio. We began the show lined up across a long table under a little white tent, a microphone perched before each of us as though we were announcing at a sporting event. It didn't take long for our formality to break, and the excitement of sharing trade secretes with fellow vegetable lovers brought us huddled together like a couple of freight hoppers standing over a trash can fire. All of us were heaped with layers of winter clothing and cheeks whipped pink by the wind. Our boisterous chatter was as loud and continuous as a long steam train, heirloom tomatoes leading into spaghetti squash, followed by basil, fresh garlic, and roasted chicken. The caboose came trudging in brimming with seasonal apples, Harelsons, Honeycrisp, Zestar and Golden Delicious!

After the show I walked slowly through the aisles of the farmers market, the chill in the air made the public scarce, and the tables were packed with colorful and fragrant treasures. My toes were like two blocks of ice and my nose was in need of a plumber, but I was too exhilarated to care. One of the ladies on the show, the one they call the herb lady, had given me some lovely fresh basil from her farm -Dehn's Garden-which I carried on my wrist. Another lady from the show, Gwen, took me over to her family farm stand -Smith Gardens.

At Smith Gardens I found some spicy icicle radishes (for Christina), some delicious homemade blueberry and blackberry jam (yum), and a diverse array of fresh snappy apples. If only I had brought a shopping cart! I left weighed down by two giant bags of apples, three of each variety, with the intention of getting to know my local varieties. What is apparent thus far, is that seasonal apples bought from the farm stand can not be compared to their grocery store cousins. A Gala picked from the top of the grocery bin speaks a softer, milder dialect than the sweet and snappy Gala from Smith Farms. My first exploration with the apples involved the assembly of an apple pie with a butter crust.

Crust:
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 1/4 stick unsalted butter
cold water

Using two knives, cut the butter into the flour salt mixture until little the butter is pea sized (do not over mix, and do not use hands. The butter needs to stay cool and not completely mixed into the flour for the crust to be flaky). Add cold water slowly, folding it into the flour. When the dough is just wet enough to be gathered, gather into a ball and knead one or two times. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.

The filling:
Peel and cut
3 medium Prairie Spy apples: tart, starchy, mild
3 medium Fireside: sweet, a perfect snap (it will be hard not to eat these before they make it into the pie)
3 medium Sweet 16: soft, anise flavored
juice from 1/2 lemon
brown sugar, to taste
cinnamon
pinch salt
a shake of cornstarch (to thicken the juice)

Roll out the dough and place in a pie pan. Add apple filling. Roll top crust over the top and pinch around the sides. Cut steam holes in the center of the pie. Bake at 425 for 15 min, reduce heat to 350 and bake for about 30 more min.

~enjoy~