Gertrude Mackay’s 1913 Recipe for ‘Stuffed Apples to Serve With a Roast’
“Into a sauce pan put two and a half cups of white stock, add a bay leaf, one teaspoonful of minced onion, half a teaspoonful of salt and a very little pepper. Simmer for twenty minutes and strain. Pare and core ten tart, red apples, put them in a granite pan, pour the stock around, cover and simmer until tender, but not broken. Carefully remove from the stock and set aside. Blanch two cupfuls of chestnut meats, slice, cover with the stock, add four teaspoonfuls of currant jelly, half a saltspoonful of salt, a little paprika and simmer until the nuts are tender. Fill the center of the apples heaping full and garnish the roast meat with them.”
Gertrude Mackay, Two Hundred and Nine Ways of Preparing the Apple (1913)
‘Tis the season! And here’s another suitably seasonal-sounding recipe from Gertrude Mackay. She’s already provided us with ‘Apple Ginger‘ to help spice up our Christmas Goose, and now here’s another apple side-dish that’s fit for a festive table.
Once again, there’s really no need for me to add anything to any of the above, except perhaps to clarify that a ‘white stock‘ is one that’s made by blanching chicken or beef bones, rather than roasting them first.
If you’re thinking of trying these stuffed apples out I would suggest using nice, firm, crunchy apples, as they should hold their shape better in the cooking.
And that stuffing sounds rather good as a sauce in its own right if you ask me.
What do you think? Do these chestnut- and redcurrant-stuffed apples sound like your sort of seasonal side? Do let me know, via the comments.
