Traditional Varieties of Swedish Apples

'Swedish Apples' is what they call these lovely apples I found at the market yesterday. It is a generic term for a wide variety of apples, a fruit that was very important to the Swedish winter diet.

They do taste a bit like the tart apples of my childhood and that brought me back to my grandmother's garden and how she knew every tree by name: Belle de Boskoop, Ingrid Marie, Cox Pomona och Cox Orange. I had a special fondness for Transparante Blanche, the pale yellow summer apples I could pick off the tree on my way to school. Some apples had exotic names, like Astrachan. 

Every variety had its purpose and season. Some were for eating, others for cooking and yet others for both. Perhaps the most remarkable one was Ingrid Marie which ripened in November and lasted until April! At Grandmother's house they were kept, wrapped in tissue paper, in baskets on the chilly steps leading to her attic.

Apples certainly herald autumn. Chilly weather is alleviated by steaming apple pies and mulled apple cider. I will feature a variety of recipes for both in my blogs in the coming Autumn days.