04 September 2008

Bountiful Harvest

The Apple trees are groaning under the weight of the fruits; I have already had to pick some to try and thin the branches out or risk them breaking under the volume of apples.

It is funny, last year I had no apples on either tree due to high winds/late frosts and this year they are all overdoing themselves with a bounteous harvest. They are technically eating apples and similar to Braeburn apples with that delicious sweetness and juicy, but in our house they also get used for cooking as you can use less sugar.

So some will go into mince pies to make it lighter, and this year they are going to be gorgeous, I say this year but of course I make the mincemeat in December for the following year allowing them to soak up the brandy for a full 12 months. Its not as bad as it seems as they are quite small pies and two bites and they are gone but I have orders for them so the couple of days before christmas will be quite busy.

1 comment:

The W.O.W. factor! said...

Your pix didn't come thru...so I just visualize an apple tree heavy for the harvesting! And the aroma too! My apple tree hasn't yielded a single apple in the 3 yrs I've lived here! Could be the diminishing of the bees, they say...but my Lavender and other things were smothered in bees!
Your mincemeat pies are making me hungry! Been canning so many veggies, I crave something sweet!