Baked Apples.—Select moderately tart or very juicy sweet apples, of equal size. Wash them, remove the cores (or at least the blossom ends) and any imperfections, with the skin also, if it is objectionable. Put in a shallow baking dish, and fill the cavities with sugar and such flavoring as seems to be demanded, allowing from one-third to one-half of a cup of sugar and about one-fourth of a teaspoonful of nutmeg or cinnamon to eight apples, with sometimes the juice and grated rind of half a lemon. Cover the bottom of the dish with boiling water (which may need to be replenished if the fruit is not very juicy), and bake in a hot oven until soft, basting often with the syrup in the dish. Sweet apples need to bake longer and more slowly than sour, and when done should be very soft. Set the baking dish in a cool place until the fruit is almost cold, then transfer the apples to a glass dish and pour the syrup, which should be thick and amber colored, around them.
Apples in Bloom. (By consent, from "Boston Cooking-School Cook-Book," by Miss Farmer.)—Select eight red apples, cook in boiling water until soft, turning them often. Have water half surround apples. Remove skins carefully, that the red color may remain, and arrange on a serving dish. To the water add one cup sugar, grated rind one-half lemon, and juice one orange; simmer until reduced to one cup. Cool, and pour over apples. Serve with sweetened whipped cream or cream sauce.
Baked Apple-Sauce. (By consent, from "Every-Day Dishes," by Mrs. E. E. Kellogg.)—Pare, core and quarter apples to fill an earthen crock or deep pudding dish, taking care to use apples of uniform degree of hardness and pieces of the same size. For two quarts of fruit thus prepared, add a cup of water and, if the apples are sour, a cup of sugar. Cover closely, and bake in a moderate oven several hours, or until of a dark red color. Sweet apples and quinces, in the proportion of two parts of apple to one of quince, baked in this way, are also good. Cut the apples into quarters, but slice the quinces much thinner as they are more difficult to cook. Put a layer of quince on the bottom of the dish, and alternate with layers of apple until the dish is full. Add cold water to half cover the fruit, and stew in the oven, well covered, without stirring, until tender. Fruit cooked in this way may be canned while hot and kept for a long period.
Stewed Apples.—Pare, quarter and core six or eight tart apples; put them into a granite kettle, strew with one cup or less of sugar, add juice of half a lemon and a few bits of the yellow rind; cover with boiling water and simmer (not boil) until tender. Dish carefully, without breaking, and serve cold.
Green-Apple Sauce.—For sour green apples it is best to use a sharp silver knife, to prevent discoloration. Cut the apples in quarters, remove the cores and skin, and drop them as fast as pared into a bowl of cold water. Skim them out into a granite kettle with a large bottom, so that there will not be much depth to the apples. Add boiling water enough to show among the pieces, cover tightly, and cook quickly. Shake the pan occasionally, and as soon as the fruit is soft mash it with a silver fork, add sugar to taste, and when it is dissolved remove from the fire. Serve hot or cold. This sauce should be free from lumps, light colored and not very sweet. A pinch of salt may be an improvement.
Apple-Sauce For Goose or Pork.—Pare, quarter and core six tart apples. Put them in a granite saucepan, cover with water, boil until tender, and press through a colander; add a teaspoonful of butter, a dash of nutmeg or cinnamon, and sugar to taste, being careful to keep the sauce tart.
Canned Apples. (By consent, from Mrs. Rorer's "Philadelphia Cook-Book.")—To four pounds of apples use one pound of sugar, the juice and yellow rind of one lemon, and one quart of water. Choose fine ripe Pippins or Bellflowers. Pare, core, and throw them into cold water. When you have sufficient to fill one or two jars, lift them carefully from the water, weigh, then put them in a porcelain-lined kettle, cover with boiling water, bring quickly to the boiling-point, and then stand them over a moderate fire, where they will scarcely bubble, until tender. While they are cooking, put the sugar and water into another kettle, stir with a clean wooden spoon until the sugar is thoroughly dissolved, add the lemon, and boil three minutes. With a perforated skimmer lift the apples from the water, hold a moment until drained, and then slide them carefully into the boiling syrup; continue until the bottom of the kettle is covered; boil until the apples are sufficiently tender to admit a straw, then lift them carefully and slide one at time into the jar. The jars should be thoroughly cleaned and heated and set on a folded wet towel. After passing a silver spoon handle around the inside of the filled jar to break any air bubbles present, screw on the top as quickly as possible. Stand the jars in a warm place in the kitchen over night, and in the morning again tighten the covers and put away in a cool, dark, dry closet.
Apple Compote. (By consent, from Mrs. Lincoln's "Boston Cook-Book.")—Make a syrup with one cup of sugar, one cup of water, and a square inch of stick cinnamon. Boil slowly for ten minutes, skimming well. Core and pare eight or ten tart apples and cook until nearly done in the syrup. Drain, and cook them for a few minutes in the oven, with the door open. Boil the syrup until almost like a jelly. Arrange the apples on a dish for serving, fill the core cavities with jelly or marmalade, and pour the syrup over them. Put whipped cream around the base and garnish the cream with jelly.
Apple Preserves. (By consent, from Mrs. Rorer's "Philadelphia Cook-Book.")—Core and pare fine ripe Pippins, and cut them into quarters. Weigh, and to each pound allow one pound of granulated sugar and a half pint of boiling water, the grated rind of one and the juice of two lemons. Boil the sugar and water until clear (about three minutes), skimming when necessary; add the lemon juice and rind, then the apples, and simmer gently until they are clear and tender, but not broken; then stand aside to cool. When cold put them into jars, cover closely, and stand them in a cool, dark place for one week. At the end of that time turn them carefully into the kettle, bring them to the boiling-point, and simmer for five minutes; then return them to the jars, cover closely with tissue paper brushed over with the white of an egg, and put in a dark, cool place to keep.
Apple Butter. (By consent, from Mrs. Rorer's "Philadelphia Cook-Book.")—This should be made from new cider, fresh from the press, and not yet fermented. Fill a porcelain-lined kettle with cider, and boil until reduced one-half. Then boil another kettleful in the same way, and so continue until you have sufficient quantity. To every four gallons of boiled cider allow a half-bushel of nice, juicy apples, pared, cored, and quartered. The cider should be boiled the day before you make the apple butter. Put the boiled cider in a very large kettle, and add as many apples as can be kept moist. Stir frequently, and when the apples are soft beat with a wooden stick until they are reduced to a pulp. Cook and stir continuously until the consistency is that of soft marmalade and the color is very dark brown. Have boiled cider at hand in case it becomes too thick, and apples if too thin. Twenty minutes before you take it from the fire add ground cinnamon and nutmeg to taste. It requires no sugar. When cold, put into stone jars and cover closely.