In the course of doing some light research on plum varieties, I came across this gem online:
The Fruit Manual; Containing The Descriptions and synonymes of the fruits and fruit trees commonly met with in the gardens & orchards of Great Britain, with selected lists of those most worthy of cultivation
It was published in 1860 and is a collection of varieties of fruit, described in detail. There are over 20 entries for apples starting with ‘G’ alone, including the Golden Knob (Small, ovate, and a little flattened. Skin yellow, much covered with russet, with a reddish tinge on one side. Eye open, stalk very short. Flesh greenish white, firm, crisp, and juicy), the Gloria Mundi (of very large size, roundish, and flattened. Skin pale yellowish green, with a faint tinge of blush on one side. Eye large and open. Stalk short and stout. Flesh white, tender, and juicy) and the Geey Leadington (An excellent dessert apple).
All of which put me in the mind not of sultry hot weather fruits, but of autumn orchards, cooler breezes, and what sweater I’ll put on the dog for the first frost.
If you want to read a more contemporary, American catalogue of apples, check out Beyond the McIntosh, Corby Kummer’s article on the wild and the reclaimed from The Atlantic.
My first (brief) cookbook review was posted on Serious Eats today, about an exciting and complicated dessert book called Demolition Desserts.
The chef makes multi-element dessert plates and is one of the best established practitioners of the no-holds-barred, any ingredient is fair game, odd pairings are good, let’s-use-science-in-dessert-construction branch of pastry.
I made a batch of s’mores brownies which despite calling for homemade graham crackers and homemade marshmallows is one of the simpler recipes therein. Got them out of the house as quickly as possible as their overwhelming, cloying sweetness in no way diminished my capacity to eat them one after the other. I don’t even like marshmallows.
Less sweet and delightfully spicy is the chipotle gingerbread, an excellent dessert when paired with autumn fruit and whipped cream.