One Bite Pie

This has been done before and can be read about in lovely books. But I learn from doing and taste simply isn't conveyed well in print. Plus, the books never seem to break it all down to what I want to know: which apple is most delicious and which apples are best for pie? So I've decided to get systematical about the situation.

Here we have, from left to right: Gala, Braebrun, Diva, Granny Smith, and Jonagold. The selection criteria was availability in the store. Before this taste test I would have said Galas are my favorite eating apple, though they can be a bit mealy. And Granny Smith makes the best pie. Pies are improved with a mix of apples for varied flavor. But Granny Smith should be the sustainer, both for supportive texture and tartness to set off the sugar. The Diva pictured here is upside down because its more distinctive looking from the bottom. It looks kind of Gala-ish from the top. It was the only apple of the group to have that old fashioned scabishness, but only barely. Why is Diva in the middle? Probably because she knew she would steal the show, though I did not.

They are lined them up in no specific order and were tasted, left to right, with one exception. Granny Smith was tasted last because its sour and I didn't want that to influence Jonagold's flavor.

I would rate the sweetness of this group, from sweet to not:
Diva, Gala, Braeburn, Jonagold, Granny Smith.

Jonagold and Diva were the two surprises. Diva has a rousing WOW of flavor and is very sweet. Jonagold was only slightly more complex and less sour than Granny Smith. I tasted twice and concede that Braeburn may be the most balanced. If you're into that sort of thing. Tending toward various extremes, I will be eating more Divas this season, for sure. But I won't be mixing Divas and Galas in pie. Together, they would be too sweet. Diva seems to have better, snappier, texture than Gala. But texture often has more to do with season.

I have an apple obsession that I keep carefully tamped down. Beyond grocery store beauties, native apples are my real interest, originally sparked by traveling as a child through the NC mountains. And intensified later when I discovered an heirloom tree in Pittsboro, NC, that gave apples black on the outside and pink on the inside. Sadly, I don't have a farm for developing orchards. Maybe one day I can start an heirloom orchard for collaboration with future grandchildren? Its generational work.

But pies are current and its time to roll some crust. On that topic I have one solid piece of advice. Salt your crusts, people. I mean, salt them more. Crust should never taste pasty. Pasty Pastry is an abomination. Plus, the extra salt allows you to cut sugar in the pie, always a good thing.