What to do with extra apples?

September 17, 2021 1:16 AM

What can I make with an extra 3 lbs of apples?

Due to a grocery mishap I have an extra 3 lb bag of Honeycrisp apples. I'm looking for some ways to use them in ways that aren't dessert. We'll probably eat some as is, but what else can I make?

No dietary restrictions. I have a slow cooker but it's small (3 qt).

posted by cozenedindigo to Food & Drink (25 answers total)

Chutney
posted by essexjan at 2:29 AM on September 17, 2021 [2 favorites]

I quite like to add apple to any kind of salad you'd serve with a vinaigrette type dressing as long as the protein in the salad works with something sweet. So for me that means that chicken, ham and cheese work great, tuna less so.
posted by koahiatamadl at 2:49 AM on September 17, 2021 [4 favorites]

I like to stir fry apples and onions with a bit of salt and pepper. Serve as a side dish.
posted by tipsyBumblebee at 3:08 AM on September 17, 2021 [2 favorites]

My mom’s applesauce is just diced apples, no need to peel, simmered with a tiny bit of water to get you started, a whisper of brown sugar, and whatever spices you like. I do a TON of cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and sometimes nutmeg. She used to serve it as a dinner side dish but I have always been weirded out by that. I usually eat it at breakfast or for a snack, maybe with yogurt. Makes the house smell awesome.
posted by chocotaco at 3:49 AM on September 17, 2021 [7 favorites]

Best answer: A 3 quart slow cooker is just the right size to turn all 3 pounds into 2 cups of apple butter, which should last 2 weeks in the refrigerator. This recipe has the general idea, although there are scores of other recipes with different spices, different sweeteners, etc. I've also done slow cooker apple butter with just the apples and one shake of cinnamon and that's it (you could do that with the honeycrisp probably, but I like the idea of the maple syrup).
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 4:01 AM on September 17, 2021 [3 favorites]

Honeycrisps would work well with my favorite salad of romaine lettuce, apples, oranges and grilled duck breast. Make a mustardy vinaigrette, and add in some juice from the oranges and perhaps from the duck if you are using a stove-top grill pan. It's delicious.
Generally I like to add diced apple to any side salad for a bit of crunch. It's good with a classic vinaigrette, but also with a cream-based dressing: double cream, lemon juice, some salt and pepper and a bit of mustard.

In Denmark we eat æbleflæsk, which is a good thing. There is also a recipe for a mayo-based salad with curry-powder, sliced onion and diced apples, which one uses over pickled heering. I couldn't find a recipe in English, but this Danish one is from a very reliable food blogger. I don't know if you can make it work with google translate.

I feel there are more good ideas for pork with apple that I have forgotten right now.


When I roast a duck or a goose, I stuff it with plenty of apples, oranges and prunes.
posted by mumimor at 4:47 AM on September 17, 2021 [1 favorite]

Honeycrisps keep really well in the fridge, so you really don't need to do anything with them unless your fridge is too small to keep them.
posted by mareli at 4:57 AM on September 17, 2021 [4 favorites]

Seconding apple butter!

I also make steamed cinnamon apples for my toddler, but they're delicious and I eat them too. Would be perfect on top of plain greek yogurt for breakfast.

For holidays, I make an apple and sage sausage stuffing that's phenomenal, you could make a small batch as a side.
posted by DoubleLune at 5:23 AM on September 17, 2021

When it's autumnal I like to cook diced apples into oatmeal for breakfasts (one apple per person, 40-50g oats per person, plus milk/spices/other additions of choice). It's easy, delicious and cooks up on the stove in about 20 minutes.
posted by littlegreen at 5:32 AM on September 17, 2021 [2 favorites]

Slice thinly, stick in the oven on very low, you have apple chips that'll keep for months.
posted by I claim sanctuary at 5:34 AM on September 17, 2021

Throw one in a Japanese curry with potatoes and carrots and onions.

Or really most any stew, apples work surprisingly well in a lot of savory dishes imo.
posted by SaltySalticid at 5:34 AM on September 17, 2021 [1 favorite]

Roast pork tenderloin with apples and onions — works well with any apple.
posted by snowmentality at 5:35 AM on September 17, 2021 [2 favorites]

Apples and onions, which has been mentioned, is an excellent tip. But it's necessary to qualify that to truly bring out the best of this combination, you must 1) caramelize them and 2) use a lot of butter.
posted by 10ch at 6:38 AM on September 17, 2021

apples and onions caramelized, and then tipped out of the pan and the pan used to sear cabbage, caraway added at the end, is a staple at ours. You can make lots of the apple-onion at once and use it over a week with fresh slices off the cabbage, if you dislike reheated cabbage as much as I do.
posted by clew at 6:40 AM on September 17, 2021 [1 favorite]

I made apple pie filling and froze it in large baggies.

When I froze it, I did it in pie plates so that all I had to do was take it out and put it in the crust and then in the oven without thawing.
posted by ArgentCorvid at 7:05 AM on September 17, 2021 [4 favorites]

My mom’s applesauce is just diced apples,

My stewed apples are just quartered and cored apples, not peeled, arranged in layers peel side down in a cooking pot; keep quartering and coring apples until you can't fit any more in under the pot lid.

Add just enough water to bring the level to about half way up the apples, and nothing else.

Put a tight-fitting lid on the pot and leave it cooking overnight at well below boiling temperature, maybe 80-90°C. In the morning, turn off the heat and leave the lid on so that no microbes settle on the contents as the pot cools down to room temperature, then stick the whole thing in the fridge.

Even starting with only halfway decent apples, this tastes better than any recipe as simple as this has any right to. For my money, it's way better without any added sugar or spices. Also delicious in a different and interesting way when served with full-fat unsweetened live-culture yoghurt.

If I eat these for breakfast, as I frequently do, I think that counts as "not a dessert".
posted by flabdablet at 7:18 AM on September 17, 2021 [3 favorites]

littlegreen: When it's autumnal I like to cook diced apples into oatmeal for breakfasts (one apple per person, 40-50g oats per person, plus milk/spices/other additions of choice).

Could you combine the diced apples with spices, and freeze them in packets for future breakfasts this winter?

You said no desserts, but muffins with apples and cinnamon are great when mornings get cooler.

If you can have a camp fire, baking cored apples in foil with the center filled with butter, raisins, cinnamon, and nuts is easy and fun and delicious. Wash, core, pack, wrap, and tuck into the coals; they come out about 900 degrees hot, but cool quickly enough. Kids love them.

(Like AgentCorvid, in fall we freeze several bags containing a pie's worth of apples & cinnamon sugar. During winter, suddenly there's fresh apple pie!)
posted by wenestvedt at 7:21 AM on September 17, 2021

Pork and apples are good together, as someone suggested above. I like to slice apples, onions, and fennel , layer pork chops seasoned with salt and pepper over them, and bake.
posted by BlueBear at 8:20 AM on September 17, 2021 [1 favorite]

Freshly picked apples keep well in the fridge. I'd be having sliced apple with peanut butter for lunch or snack every other day for a month.

Apple crisp is dessert, but you can reduce the sugar a bit. The topping has oatmeal and you can add bran to make the sugar more manageable is someone is diabetic.
posted by theora55 at 9:14 AM on September 17, 2021 [3 favorites]

Apples work well in a pork and sauerkraut dish. I can't find the recipe I used but this one is along the lines I am thinking.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 10:12 AM on September 17, 2021

Use as a substitute for egg when baking.

Eat 3 per day per person until they're gone.

Dehydrate with ginger for ginger apple chips.
posted by aniola at 10:16 AM on September 17, 2021

Pork and apple pie with a cheddar sage crust. Also good with a dairy free sage crust. Okay with turkey subbed, but add some fat to make it moister. I keep meaning to try it with goat.
posted by carrioncomfort at 11:09 AM on September 17, 2021

Apple Pancakes? https://www.thekitchn.com/apple-pancakes-recipe-23218264
posted by LouMac at 12:35 PM on September 17, 2021

Honeycrisps are usually pretty big, so isn't three pounds only like 6-8 apples? They're also more expensive. I say keep them as is and eat them (it wouldn't take me long), and then get other apples whose flavor isn't as important and use those as ingredients. You probably won't know it's a honey crisp or not in some of these recipes, but you'd sure notice the difference if you ate them as is.
posted by jonathanhughes at 7:32 PM on September 17, 2021 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: Thanks everyone! I ended up making the apple butter that EmpressCallipygos linked above, and it's delicious! Bonus: my house smelled amazing all day.
posted by cozenedindigo at 4:47 PM on September 19, 2021