What kind of apples are these?

We have an apple tree in our yard, along with the lemon, orange, tangerine, and lime (which we planted and I think is dying). Last fall we got maybe 3 apples? This year we have a lot more, but most are pretty small, but some are normal sized. But I am not a huge fruit eater, and I don't pay attention to apples at the store, so I don't know what kind of apples we have! They are very juicy, and I think more sweet than tart. So probably not baking apples. BF wants to bake an apple pie with them so badly! But I don't know if they'll work. So, anyone know what these are? Pam- I'm looking at you, you're the cooking/baking queen and I know you go picking apples every year, so educate me in the world of apples!



And here is the same apple picked today, different sides:

Based on the look of them and your description, my best guess is that they are Gala apples (my favorite!). I don't bake, though, so I'm not sure how they would do in a pie.

I bet you're right! They do look like the pics of gala apples in Google Image search. Thanks!

My best guesses?
- Fuji
- Akane
- Falstaff
- Gala

I'm leaning towards Fuji or Red Falstaff, though, since those are both popular garden apple trees.

What colour is the flesh? White, yellow-y, greenish?

Does not resemble a Gala to me, but an Empire, a variety derived from originally from grafting Delicious and MacIntosh.
The texture and flavor you describe as well tends to lead me to believe it is an Empire.
It's best use is eaten straight from the tree as they are a variety that does not keep well.

Haha, yeah, my apples look like google image search of empire and fuji too. The flesh is pretty much as white as an apple can be, I guess.

If they are empire they'll make great applesauce.

Originally Posted by Mystik Spiral

Based on the look of them and your description, my best guess is that they are Gala apples (my favorite!). I don't bake, though, so I'm not sure how they would do in a pie.

Click to expand...

I agree, they do look like Gala apples which are my favorite also. They look a little like McAntosh which I do not like.

Born and raised in Washington, worked in the orchards, tasted so many apple varieties that I can no longer stand apples in any form

I don't know what kinda it is, but it sure does look delicious!!!

I will say Fuji

It does rather look like a Gala. But it just might be a Braeburn, too. And the reason I'm thinking Braeburn is because that's a really popular apple for backyard growers.

Whether it's a Gala or a Braeburn, both are wonderful for baking and for applesauce. With the Gala, you don't need as much sugar as they can be a sweeter apple.

Either way, you've got some really pretty apples!

I don't know, every apple I'm googling looks the same to me now, except the green and yellow ones.

Also, after looking up inside the tree, I don't think we have as many as I thought. We still have lots more than last year, but not more than we can handle like the lemons. Also, the squirrels are getting a lot of them in the day, and I'm guessing opossums and/or rats are munching on them at night. I hate finding a nice big apple with a few bites out of it!!! That's the squirrel. If I cut those in half and put them behind the garage, the nighttime critters fiinish them off and they're gone by the morning.

Some more pics. Most of them are small, like I can hold 3 of them in my hand, but some are big.





And the tree. We need to trim the left side!!

Looks like the kind of apples that grow on the tree in my backyard- I don't know what they are but they taste delicious! They're awesome for eating plain and baking.

This year our apples are doing extremely well, at least 20.

You know, your apples have a blocky shape to them; they're not really round. And that's why I'm just not convinced that you have Galas. The Gala is more rounded than yours. There's a word for the bottom of the apple with those "knuckles" (that's not the word) on the bottom. Yours tend to remind me so much of a Red Delicious with that kind of shape.

I'm really leaning toward Braeburn.

Well, I don't know if they're not round because they're supposed to be not round, or if they're just odd shaped for who knows what reason. We have gotten a lot of mutant produce, some of which I've posted on my blog.

Now I have to get back to finding a recipe to cook buttercup squash from the garden. I have 2 normal sized ones, and 2 tiny ones the size of the small apples.. I also have 1 butternut squash about the size of a pear. I'm just looking up general winter squash recipes cos I know they can be substituted pretty well, but it's hard to find something savory that's not a soup! I don't want a squash and apple bake for dinner!!

I've cut up squash into chunks and roasted it with some balsamic vinegar, rosemary and thyme. A little oil too I think. I think I used butternut squash. Also some sweet potatoes, onion and that kind of stuff. I did it for Thanksgiving last year and it was really tasty!

Oh! I was going to say Braeburn as well. They dont look as red as the Empire apples I remember getting.

Now I REALLY need to get to the orchard!!

Make a pie, buy vanilla ice cream and call us when it is ready.

I second that pie and ice cream idea!!

For your squash? This is from the Barefoot Contessa and it's wonderful stuff. I made this as a side dish one time when we had friends over and after dinner, I started to clear the table. One of our friends put his hand on my arm and said, "Hey, keep that here for awhile" meaning the platter of the veggies. We sat at the table and picked at the veggies, using forks to pick them up and pop the chunks into our mouths. It's nothing exotic by any stretch, but they all loved it, too. (I had doubled the batch, thinking I could make soup with the leftovers the next day, but we ended up munching on the veggies.)

And as Mooch said, the balsamic vinegar would kick it up a bit. Balsamic vinegar is good stuff.

Roasted Winter Vegetables

1 pound carrots, peeled
1 pound parsnips, peeled
1 large sweet potato, peeled
1 small butternut squash (about 2 pounds) peeled and seeded
3 Tbsp. good olive oil
1-1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Cut the carrots, parsnips, sweet potato, and butternut squash into 1-to-1-3/4 inch cubes. All vegetables shrink while cooking, so don't cut them too small.

Place all the vegetables in a single layer on two sheet pans. Drizzle them with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss well. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until all the vegetables are tender, turning once with a metal spatula.

Sprinkle with parsley, season to taste, and serve hot. Serves 8.

And if you want to make soup sometime from the leftovers, double your veggie recipe and then make this.....

Roasted Winter Vegetable Soup

6-8 cups chicken stock
1 recipe Roasted Winter Vegetables (from above)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For serving:
Croutons
Olive oil

In a large saucepan, heat 6 cups of chicken stock. In two batches, coarsely puree the roasted vegetables and the chicken stock in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pour the soup back into the pot and season to taste. Thin with more chicken stock and reheat. The soup should be thick, but not like a vegetable puree, so add more chicken stock and/or water until it's the consistency you like.

Serve with croutons and a drizzle of good olive oil. Serves 6-8.