Stephen Fries: Pick your own apples, then make strata and pork tenderloin

I was at a farmers market last week and overheard a customer talking with a fellow shopper about how she loves fall and all of its bounty that she enjoys cooking with, especially apples and pumpkins. When I think of autumn, what comes to mind is comfort food, soup and pie.

During this season I also look for the many varieties of apples available to incorporate into recipes and scout out ideas for cooking with pumpkins and cranberries. Let’s talk about apples today.

There is nothing better on a cool September day than a trip to the local orchard to pick fresh apples. They are ripe for the picking in September, and growers are opening their orchards to those of us who like to pick our own.

Fans of the fruit know this is the best time to find many heirloom varieties that aren’t sold in grocery stores. According to the U.S. Apple Association, the United States grows around 200 unique apple varieties. After eating some crisp apples right at the orchard, many enthusiastic pickers bring home bushels and pecks to make pies and apple sauce galore. Another flashback; my paternal grandmother making her chunky apple sauce when I was a young boy. I remember the large, glass, instant-coffee jars she put it in for us to take home and scraping every last bit off the sides of the jar. Why is it that food brings back such fond memories?

There are so many delicious recipes to celebrate the apple with, so why limit the choices to the old standbys like pie and sauce?

To inspire you to think outside the box, check out “The Apple Cookbook: 125 Freshly Picked Recipes” 3rd edition by Olwen Woodier (© 2015, Storey Publishing, $14.95). There are recipes from sweet to savory and from simple to show stopping, with gluten-free options as well.

After an introduction to apples full of history and information on purchasing, storing and preparing, the challenge begins as to what recipes to make first. Is it going to be roast chicken with apples, turnips and garlic; cornbread apple stuffing; apple, dried fruit and Israeli couscous salad; phyllo tarts with caramelized apples?

Perhaps it will be one of these recipes for apple, sausage and cheese strata or pork tenderloin stuffed with apples. For the recipe for apple-cranberry meringue pie, visit bit.ly/2x5x3cl.

I found Woodier’s apple recommendations with each recipe, tips on purchasing and storing and the “meet the apples” chart quite helpful.

If you would like to capture the taste of a fresh September harvest all year round, the enticing recipes show off new ways to use classic varieties and exciting ideas for delicious heirlooms. Whether you bake, sauté, purée, roast, dip them in honey, drench them in caramel and eat it on a stick, or just eat it right off the tree, apples are the center-stage fruit this time of year.

The headnote says: “Use any thick-cut sliced bread for this baked dish. If the bread is very fresh, let the cubes sit out on a baking tray to dry. For the cheese, choose grated cheddar, mixed Mexican-style, or odds and ends on hand, even crumbled blue or feta. Mozzarella is not a good choice because it forms strands rather than melting into the layers. A strata like this can serve as a festive dinner or brunch side, or as a main dish with a salad or roasted vegetable.”

Sausage & cheese strata

4 sweet Italian sausages, casings removed

1 medium sweet onion, diced

¼ medium fennel bulb, tough outer layers and basal core removed, grated on large holes of box grater, or more to taste

2 medium apples (ripe Granny Smith, Stayman, Fuji), peeled, cored and diced

2 tablespoons snipped fresh fennel fronds or chopped fresh rosemary or fresh thyme

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 loaf Italian or French (soft crust) bread, cut into ½-inch slices, then 1-inch pieces (5-6 cups)

2 cups grated or crumbled cheese of choice (except mozzarella)

4 large eggs

3 cups whole or low-fat milk

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Heat a large skillet over medium. Crumble in the sausages and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Stir in the onion and fennel and cook for 5 minutes. Add the apples, fennel fronds, and salt and pepper to taste, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Spread half of the bread pieces in the prepared baking dish. Cover with half of the sausage mixture. Sprinkle half of the cheese over the top. Make another layer with the bread and top with the remaining sausage mixture.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs, then whisk in the milk. Pour over the bread and sausage mixture. Using the back of a serving spoon or a spatula, lightly press down on the strata. Sprinkle the remaining 1 cup cheese over the top. Let the strata sit at room temperature for 15 minutes so the bread can begin to soak up the liquids.

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until puffed and golden. Serve warm or at room temperature.

The headnote says: “This recipe is another favorite of Jim Law’s of Linden Vineyards. You can replace the butter with olive oil, but the flavor will not be quite as rich. The stuffing can also be used in split boneless chicken breasts, which you would bake for only 20 to 25 minutes.”

Pork tenderloin stuffed with apples

1 pork tenderloin (about 1½ pounds)

2 tablespoons butter or olive oil

2 medium apples (Jonagold, Stayman, Fuji, winesap), peeled if desired, cored and thinly sliced

1 medium white onion, chopped

1 cup fresh bread crumbs, made by processing 2 large slices stale bread

½ teaspoon dried marjoram

½ teaspoon dried savory

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon olive oil, plus more if needed

GLAZE

4 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

1 tablespoon brown mustard

Split the tenderloin almost in half lengthwise. Place it between two sheets of wax paper and pound it to about ½-inch thick.

Melt the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the apples and onion and sauté until lightly browned and soft, about 5 minutes. Add the bread crumbs, marjoram and savory, and toss with the apple mixture until moistened through. Remove from the heat.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Season the inside of the tenderloin with the salt and pepper and spread the apple stuffing over the surface. Roll the tenderloin lengthwise and tie with kitchen string.

Return the skillet to medium heat. Add the teaspoon of oil and brown the pork on all sides, drizzling in a little more oil if necessary. Place in a baking dish.

To make the glaze, combine the honey, brown sugar, vinegar and mustard in a small bowl. Pour the glaze over the tenderloin and bake for 45 minutes, basting with the glaze 3 or 4 times. Remove from the oven and let rest 5-10 minutes before serving.

Check out these pick-your-own apple locations (call for hours and crop availability):

Lyman Orchards, Middlefield (860-349-1793); Bishop’s Orchards, Guilford (203-453-2338); Beardsley’s Cider Mill and Orchard, Shelton (203-926-1098); Drazen Orchards, Cheshire (203-272-7985); Norton Brothers Fruit Farm, Cheshire (203-272-8418); Rose Orchards, North Branford (203-488-7996); Scotts’ Connecticut Valley Orchards, Deep River (860-526-9633).

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