Types of Apples—and How to Use Them Arkansas Black Apples The Arkansas Black apple is believed to have originated in the 1870’s from a Winesap seedling in an orchard in Benton County, Arkansas. Arkansas Black apples are vivid red to dark purple with a somewhat waxy skin. Its flesh is golden hued and juicy with a fine-grained and crisp texture. Its highly aromatic and sweet-tart flavor mellows and becomes more palatable with storage. The flesh as well will soften with storage. When first harvested the Arkansas Black apple is extremely hard, almost to the point that many would find it difficult to eat out of hand. How to use them: The firm texture of the Arkansas Black apple makes it an excellent cooker. It can be baked, sautéed and roasted. Try baked into a pie or bread pudding. They can also be slow cooked and pureed to make soups and sauces. Its aromatic juice lends itself to ciders and jams. The flavor of the Arkansas Black pairs well with by winter squash, pecans, cranberries, vanilla, thyme, sage, cinnamon and cardamom. Braeburn Apples Tart, zesty, and big on flavor, the Braeburn apple was first discovered in New Zealand in 1952. Since then, they’ve become wildly popular, especially since their taste perfectly encapsulates the flavors of fall. How to use them: Braeburn apples are best suited for both raw and cooked applications such as baking and roasting. When raw, the apples can be sliced and added to salads and sandwiches or served on a cheese board or fruit platter. The sweet-tart flavor of the Braeburn apple mellows just slightly when cooked and will compliment both sweet and savory preparations. They can be roasted along with root vegetables, sautéed and served atop pork, or slow cooked and pureed to make sauces, jams, and preserves. Braeburn apples hold their shape well when cooked. They can be baked into pies, crisps, tarts, cakes, and galettes or hollowed and stuffed to make baked apples. Chopped Braeburn apples will also add sweetness and texture to bread, pancakes, and muffins. Braeburn apples pair well with cheese such as gouda and camembert, cinnamon, and salted caramel. They will keep up to a month when stored in the refrigerator. Types of Apples—and How to Use Them Cortland Apples Cortland apples are medium to large in size, and often rather flat in shape. Their crisp, finely-grained white flesh is exceptionally juicy with a sharp, sweet-tart, vinous flavor. The Cortland apple is an older American offspring of McIntosh apples. It combines the sweet flavor of the McIntosh with the cold hardiness of its other parent, Ben Davis. Cortlands have long been one of the most commonly produced apples in New York. How to use them: Extremely slow to brown when cut, the Cortland apple is perfect for use in fresh apple preparations. Add cubed apple to green and fruit salads. Slice thin and add to sandwiches, burgers, and quesadillas. Use in lieu of crackers and pair with sweet and savory dips or flavorful cheeses. The sweet-tart flavor of the Cortland apple also shines in cooked preparations. Bake into cakes, tarts, cobbler, quiche and galettes, or slow cook to make soups, sauces, and preserves. Cortlands also make excellent cider and juice apples. They do not store exceptionally well, and should be eaten soon after harvest for best flavor and texture. Empire Apples Empire apples (New York) are bright red medium sized round apple with a creamy white interior. A successful cross between Red Delicious and McIntosh, the Empire contains flavor characteristics of both its parent apples. Its crisp and juicy flesh has a flavor that is sweet like a Red Delicious and tart like a McIntosh. Empire apples are a member of the rose family along with pears and quince. How to use them: Empire apples can be roasted, baked or sautéed. Their crisp flesh and sweet tart flavor make them perfect for fresh preparations such as chicken salad and coleslaw. They pair well with pumpkin, pear, sharp cheeses and warm spices such as ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg. Their size and low susceptibility to bruising make them an excellent snacking apple. Types of Apples—and How to Use Them Envy Apples Envy apples are a child of Braeburn and Royal Gala apples, and were first developed in New Zealand. They’re known for their sweet, almost floral taste and thick red and yellow skin. They’re high in vitamin C, meaning that their flesh stays white and crispy much longer than other apples once they’re cut. How to use them: Since envy apples are slow to brown, they work great in any dish that shows off apple slices: think salads, pies, or strudel. Thanks to their natural sweetness, they’re also perfect fresh, on their own. Fuji Apples A hybrid variety, Fuji apples were developed in Japan in the late 1930s (Interestingly enough, they’re a cross of two American cultivars, the Red Delicious and Virginia Rails Gainet). The almost spherical, mottled apples are especially sweet and crisp, and they have a long shelf life compared to other apple cultivars. It’s no wonder they’re one of the most common apple varieties around. How to use them: Fuji apples are best suited for both raw and cooked applications such as baking, roasting, and stewing. The apples can be sliced and tossed into green and fruit salads, grated into coleslaw, minced and stirred into rice, or chopped and used as a topping over oatmeal, pancakes, and cereal. Fuji apples can also be pressed into juices and cider, cooked into jelly, steeped into teas, blended into applesauce, or boiled into apple butter. The thick skin and dense flesh of the apple hold well when cooked, making the apple a popular variety used in soups and roasts or baked into pies, cakes, tarts, crumbles, crisps, and muffins. Fuji apples can also be layered in sandwiches, topped over pizza, cooked into quiche, or mashed into potatoes. In Japan, Fuji apples are commonly placed on a stick and dipped in caramel or candy coatings as a sweet treat at food festivals. Fuji apples pair well with meats such as pork chops, bacon, sausage, bacon, turkey, and poultry, cheeses such as cheddar, goat, brie, gorgonzola, and blue, thyme, dates, spinach, cabbage, brussels sprouts, and green beans. The fresh apples will keep 3-6 months when stored in a cool, dry, and dark place such as the refrigerator. Types of Apples—and How to Use Them Gala Apples Like several other popular apple cultivars, Gala apples were developed in New Zealand in the 1930s. The mottled and aromatic apples are especially sweet, with a smoother interior texture that works well both raw and cooked. Recently, American Gala apple production finally outpaced Red Delicious, making it the country’s favorite apple variety, according to the U.S. Apple Association. How to use them: The delicate flavor and texture of the Gala apple shines in fresh preparations. They are perfect for use in fruit, green and chopped salads. Add diced gala to fruit salsas and chutneys. Slice and add to burgers, paninis and crostinis. Their sweet flavor becomes milder when cooked making them perfect in baked preparations when paired with stronger flavored apples such a Granny Smith, Arkansas Black, Pippin and Mutsu. The flavor of pears, winter squash, onions, pecans, turkey, curry, brie, cheddar and Swiss cheese complement Gala apples. Golden Delicious Apples Golden Delicious apples were discovered in West Virginia a little more than a century ago. These large, yellow-green apples are super sweet, so they’re popular in desserts, but they’re also used in apple sauce and apple butter because of their tender flesh. The Golden Delicious apple is a parent in many popular hybrid varieties, including Gala and Pink Lady but are not related to the Red Delicious Apple. How to use them: The sweet-tartness of the Golden Delicious means this apple is a good fresh eating variety. Fresh, raw apple slices may be added to green salads, fruit salads, or grain salads. Golden Delicious apples also have the necessary acid content and stability for baking. They can be baked into crisps, crumbles, tarts, cakes, galettes, and breads. Apple slices may also be cooked down into preserves and butters, or pureed into sauces and soups. The Golden Delicious pairs well with savory items, such as onions, cabbages, pork, cheeses and strong herbs. Add slices to top burgers and sandwiches. Finally, this versatile apple can also be juiced or dried. Types of Apples—and How to Use Them Granny Smith Apples These small, lime-colored apples (Australia) are known for their puckeringly tart flavor, which shines whether it’s cooked into a pie or blended into a smoothie. They’re also the go-to variety for making caramel apples. Since they’re so sour when fresh, try serving the slices with a protein, like cheese, or grate it and add the shreds to a salad. How to use them: Granny Smith apples are often used in baking because of their high acidity and ability to hold their shape when cooked. Try baked into sweet or savory pies, tarts, or meat pastries; add to savory bread stuffing, risotto or potato pancakes. Their sweet-tart flavor is a great addition to soups, smoothies and sauces. Because they are slow to brown when cut, they are perfect diced and added to fresh preparations such as salads and salsas or sliced and paired with cheese. Honeycrisp Apples The Honeycrisp apple is exactly how it sounds: saccharine, so crisp it’s crunchy, and juicy.