MAKE EVERY BITE COUNT - FOOD AND WINE PAIRING

There are several ways to approach the wine and food pairings, whether doing it is at a restaurant or to enjoy the proper wine with your dinner at home. The first step is to decide on the food to be served. At the Inn, I always start with the food. It is much easier for our wine expert and me to match wine to food than food to the wine. If you will be doing multiple courses, make sure to start with lighter flavors and work your way up to bigger, bolder flavors, then end with sweet dessert. The wines will progress the same way and the flavors from the earlier foods and wines will not overpower the following courses.

Once you have the foods decided upon, now comes the tricky part of matching the wines. Of course, the most important choice is to make sure to drink what you like. If you prefer a particular wine regardless of the food you are eating, by all means drink that. There is absolutely nothing wrong with drinking a light white wine while eating a steak, just as there is never an issue with drinking a big cabernet sauvignon with a piece of light fish. What matters most is that you like how your wine tastes. However, to make every bite count, by matching the flavors and characteristics of the wine to the flavors of the foods, I think that you can more fully enjoy how certain wines pair with some foods.

Now that you have decided to try to match wines to your foods, the most basic guideline to follow is light foods go with light wine and heavy foods go with heavy wines. But you must also keep in mind the accompanying ingredients. For example, a Sauvignon Blanc goes very nicely with a piece of fish with a light sauce. However, if you were to add tomatoes and a rich lobster stock to the sauce, a medium bodied red wine like a Pinot Noir will actually be a great choice. The old rule of white with fish and red with meat is a great place to start, but do keep in might what else will be on the fish or meat.

If you are going to do a spicy dish, this will certainly determine what type of wine you choose. Certain wines more perfectly complement the spiciness of certain dishes, just as the spiciness can bring out the good (or bad) flavors of the wine. A slightly sweet Riesling or Gewürztraminer is a very good choice for spicy foods.

The best way to find the best pairing for your food is to do a little internet research. There are hundreds of websites that can guide you to the right match. Simply Google the name of the dish and add “wine pairing” and you should have several hundred links to choose from for a suitable wine choice.

If you are planning a special dinner, another option is to test the dish beforehand with two or more wines. Yes, this can be time consuming or costly, but you get to sample wines and make sure you know how to prepare the dish before the big dinner. Sounds good to me! Make sure to taste each wine without the food first, then, taste each one after taking a couple of bites. See how the flavors all come together (or not, if they are the wrong choices).

Now, if you already have a special bottle of wine, you can always match a food with that. The bottle may have some basic suggestions. If not or if not enough information is provided, go to the winery’s website and look up that wine. There will probably be some more detailed suggestions on what to have with the wine. The next step is Google the name of the wine and add “food match”. There should be plenty of links to follow.

Remember- wine and foods go great together, so do not get too intimidated with finding the perfect wine to drink with your meal. Focus on flavors and characteristics of the foods, do some research, ask questions at the wine store or even call a Chef. I have taken many phone calls and emails from family, friends and strangers asking for advice on what to drink with a particular dish or what to eat with a particular wine.

With all of the wines out there to choose from, it can be somewhat daunting, but drink what you like, like what you drink and make every bite count.

Poached Pears with Spicy Honeyed Vermouth Syrup
This dessert is very easy to prepare, looks fancy and difficult and matches very nicely with a sweet dessert wine like a sauterne or late harvest Riesling.

6 servings
1 bottle dry white vermouth
½ cup honey
½ teaspoon black pepper (preferably freshly ground)
½ teaspoon powdered ginger
1 cinnamon stick
6 pears, preferably Bosc

In a sauce pan deep enough to hold the pears, add all ingredients except pears. Bring to a boil, then, turn to low simmer.

Peel pears, leaving whole with stems intact and cut out core. A melon baller works best to core from the wide, bottom end for this.

Put pears into pot, turn up heat slightly, cover and cook pears until soft enough to easily pierce thickest part with a knife, approximately 20-25 minutes. You can do the pears in batches if needed.

Remove pears from syrup to cool.

Once all pears are cooked, reduce liquid uncovered until it is a thick golden syrup. Let cool.

To serve, place one pear on dessert plate, drizzle with some of the syrup. Garnish with mint and some unsweetened whipped cream. Serve with your favorite dessert wine and enjoy.

Orlo Coots is Head Chef at Adair Country Inn and Restaurant. Enjoy his cooking Thursday through Monday. (603) 444-2600. Orlo can be reached at cheforlo@hotmail.com for any questions about this recipe or any other food-related questions you may have. Remember- whether cooking for 1 or for a crowd, make every bite count.

MAKE EVERY BITE COUNT

As I prepared to write this month’s column, I stopped to think about how I try to make every bite count while cooking here at Adair Country Inn & Restaurant. While making sure to properly season and properly prepare and cook each item of food are important steps, it is really much, much more than that. Also involved is making sure to get the best quality and freshest foods you can buy and correctly storing and handling them.

I then thought about how I go about researching and planning our Dine Around the World menus. I spend time searching on the internet for authentic dishes and food items for each country we “travel” to. The internet has made making every bite count much more accessible. From sites that present culinary traditions and national dishes to shopping sites that allow anyone to purchase just about any ingredient in usable amounts for reasonable prices, the internet has been a very important tool to make sure that our travels are as authentic as possible. It is no longer necessary to just use what is available to somewhat recreate a national dish from a far off country. We are able to research and order the special ingredients that are the difference between the finished dish being a close approximation to it being just like the way the dish is served in the country of origin. It is very satisfying to hear a guest say “We lived there for 2 years and that dish is exactly the way it tasted over there”.

While we do have a very nice Asian market in Littleton, there is very little else nearby when it comes to procuring specialty ingredients. A perfect example is when I was preparing the dishes for our Guatemala dinner, a few of the recipes called for annatto paste, guajillo and pasilla peppers. All the recipes gave alternate ingredients, but those would have made the dishes less authentic. As we strive to make every bite count, authenticity is the goal. I searched on the internet for sources of these ingredients and was able to have them delivered to the Inn. Again, they were delivered in quantities that did not cost too much or such that I will need to use them in every other dish to get rid of them.

So, when you go to prepare you next meal- whether it is a traditional Thanksgiving meal or a special ethnic meal, use all the tools available to you- fresh food, proper seasonings and research on the proper ingredients and preparation. This will help you to fully enjoy the meal knowing that you have made every bite count.

Here is the recipe for our Apple-Cranberry crisp, which was our most popular dessert this past fall foliage season. Fresh local ingredients prepared simply to bring out the full flavors of the fruits. This is a great dessert for your Thanksgiving table.

-butter a 9x9 baking pan
-preheat oven to 350
-serves 6

for topping:
1/2 cup walnut pieces
1 cup brown sugar (packed)
2/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 ounces butter, cold, cut into pieces
1/2 cup oats (not instant oatmeal)

for filling:
5 apples- mixture of Granny Smith and Macintosh
6 ounces cranberries
¼ cup and 2 Tbsp sugar

To make topping:
Chop walnuts to medium fine pieces, set aside
in processor, put brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt into bowl and
process until sugar is no longer lumpy.
Put butter onto mix, process until mixture resembles coarse meal.
add oats and walnuts, process just too combine
(mixture can be made 2 days ahead and refrigerated).

To make the filling:
Peel, core and quarter the apples. can use peeling machine or peel by hand.
Put apples, cranberries and sugar into mixing bowl and combine thoroughly.
Put fruit mixture into prepared pan. Put walnut topping and spread evenly.
Bake 40-50 minutes until fruit is bubbly and topping is nicely browned.
Serve warm with ice cream.

— Orlo Coots is Head Chef at Adair Country Inn & Restaurant. Enjoy his cooking Thursdays through Mondays by making a reservation at 603-444-2600. Orlo can be reached at cheforlo@hotmail.com for questions about this recipe or any other food-related questions. Remember — whether cooking for one or for a crowd, make every bite count.

Enjoy Summer Down Under with the Cuisine of Australia

Adair Country Inn & Restaurant “travels” to Australia on Thursday, December 2, as part of our Dine Around the World evenings. To put it into perspective, we recently had some guests stay here at the Inn who traveled more than halfway around the world to get to Bethlehem. Australia really is the land down under, 13-14 time zones away and in the Southern hemisphere. While we are preparing for winter, the Aussie summer is just about to begin. We will celebrate the Australian summer by serving shrimp on the barbie (Australian for barbecue!) and grilled lamb sausages.

Australian cuisine is very conflicted. Relying on the many traditional, conservative dishes dating back to the early English settlers, Australians never really developed a national cuisine. With a surge of immigration in the 1980s — many from Asian countries — many chefs started to incorporate Asian foods and cooking techniques into their menus. Recently, there has been much more interest in searching out indigenous foods and recipes. These factors have led to an exciting variety of foods and dishes being newly discovered by Australians. Kangaroo, long not much favored as a food, has become very popular with many new Australian chefs as a true Australian ingredient.

Perhaps the biggest stride that Australia has made has been in their production of world-class wines. While there are no native Australian wine grapes, many major varietals have been introduced to the country. Australia has become one of the premier producers of Shiraz in the entire world, and Penfolds Grange is considered by many to be the greatest red wine in the world.

While Australia does not have a long culinary history, it has certainly had great success in recent years due to immigration and a desire to show off the country’s local foods. Our Dine Around the World menu touches on both aspects of Australia’s culinary history. We will offer some traditional early English classics like lamb, meat pies and Pavlova, along with some newly rediscovered native foods such as kangaroo and barramundi (a freshwater fish) — all paired with some world-class Australian wines.

Ending the Meal on a Sweet Note

A trip down under is not complete without a serving of Pavlova, a meringue cake that has a light and delicate crisp crust and a soft sweet marshmallow center. This lovely dessert is typically served with softly whipped cream and fresh fruit.

Pavlova
4 large egg whites:
1 cup superfine (castor) sugar
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1/2 tablespoon cornstarch (corn flour)
Topping:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1-1/2 tablespoons granulated white sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Fresh fruit — kiwi, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, passion fruit, peaches, pineapple, or other fruit of your choice.

Pavlova: Preheat oven to 250 degrees F and place rack in center of oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and draw a 7-inch circle on the paper.
In the bowl of your electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on medium-high speed until they hold soft peaks. Start adding the sugar, a tablespoon at a time, and continue to beat until the meringue holds very stiff peaks. (Test to see if the sugar is fully dissolved by rubbing a little of the meringue between your thumb and index finger. The meringue should feel smooth, not gritty. If it feels gritty the sugar has not fully dissolved so keep beating until it feels smooth between your fingers). Sprinkle the vinegar and cornstarch over the top of the meringue and, with a rubber spatula, fold in.

Gently spread the meringue inside the circle drawn on the parchment paper, smoothing the edges, making sure the edges of the meringue are slightly higher than the center. (You want a slight well in the center of the meringue to place the whipped cream and fruit.)

Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes or until the outside is dry and takes on a very pale cream color. Turn the oven off, leave the door slightly ajar, and let the meringue cool completely in the oven. (The outside of the meringue will feel firm to the touch, if gently pressed, but as it cools you will get a little cracking and you will see that the inside is soft and marshmallowy.)
The cooled meringue can be made and stored in a cool dry place, in an airtight container, for a few days.

Just before serving gently place the meringue onto a serving plate. Whip the cream in your electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, until soft peaks form. Sweeten with the sugar and vanilla and then mound the softly whipped cream into the center of the meringue. Arrange the fruit randomly, or in a decorative pattern, on top of the cream. Serve immediately as this dessert does not hold for more than a few hours.
Serves 6 to 8.

— Orlo Coots is Head Chef at Adair Country Inn & Restaurant. Enjoy his cooking Thursdays through Mondays by making a reservation at 603-444-2600. Orlo can be reached at cheforlo@hotmail.com for questions about this recipe or any other food-related questions. Remember — whether cooking for one or for a crowd, make every bite count.

Travel to Guatemala

By Head Chef Orlo Coots

Adair Country Inn & Restaurant “traveled” to Guatemala on Thursday October 28, 2010 as part of our Dine Around the World event. While I was working in the various restaurants in and around Boston, I had the opportunity to work with people from all over the globe. Many of these people came from Central and South America. As cooks, they brought with them the recipes from their homes and integrated them into the restaurants. Some were served to the staff during staff meal; others were placed on menus or served as nightly specials. Many of the ingredients used were still at the time foreign to most American born chefs and diners. Some of the most intriguing meals were the ones cooked by the Guatemalans I worked with.

With a culinary history starting with the Maya and then heavily influenced by Spanish and other nations, Guatemalan food is rich and exotic, with many layers of flavors throughout the dishes. Due to long braising with several additions of spices and pastes, the finished foods are wonderfully balanced with all of the flavors coming through. As with many Central American nations, corn and black beans play a large role in the culinary traditions of Guatemala.

The Guatemalan cooks I worked with were the first people who introduced me to tomatillos, black beans, plantains and yucca. To some degrees, these foods have become somewhat common here in the States, but 20 years ago, they were still rather unusual and exotic. Having sampled the ingredients and dishes at he restaurant, I asked for the recipes. Of course, most of them were old family methods of cooking and the cooks did not have written recipes. It was “add this much of this and this many of that” type of cooking, which quite often is the best way to learn how to cook different foods. From these early lessons, I learned how to use some of these once strange ingredients and I was able to replicate some of the original dishes they showed me.

One dish that stands out is Hilachas, beef simmered with tomatoes and tomatillos. This is a rather simple dish to prepare, but with many layers of flavors due to the steps involved in the process and the flavorful variety of ingredients. This dish is very representative of the many influences of Guatemalan cuisine. When served with the traditional sides of tortillas, rice and plantains, you have an authentic Guatemalan meal full of history and flavor.

Hilachas-Cooked and shredded beef with tomatoes and tomatillos 6 to 8 servings
• Beef, flank or skirt steak, cubed -- 2 pounds
• Water -- 5 cups
• Oil -- 2-3 tablespoons
• Onion, chopped -- 1
• Chopped tomatoes -- 1 cup
• Chopped tomatillos -- 1 cup
• Guajillo chiles, warmed over a flame, deseeded and chopped -- 2-3
• Salt and pepper -- to season
• Potatoes, peeled and chopped -- 1 pound
• Carrots, peeled and chopped -- 2-3
• Shredded corn tortillas -- 1/2 cup
• Cilantro, chopped -- 1 bunch

Method
Place the beef, water and a big pinch of salt in a large saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until the beef is very tender. Remove the beef to a bowl, reserving the broth, and set aside to cool. When cool enough to handle, shred the beef with your fingers and set aside.
While the beef is simmering, place the onion, tomatoes, tomatillos and chiles in a food processor or blender and puree, adding a little water if necessary.
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium flame. Add the onion-tomato puree and simmer until the puree is cooked down and darkens somewhat in color, about 10 minutes. Do not burn.
Add the shredded beef and about 3 cups of the broth to the onion-tomato puree and season with salt and pepper. Simmer for about 15 minutes.
Stir in the potatoes, onions and a little more broth or water if necessary. Simmer until the potatoes and carrots are cooked through, about 15-20 minutes.
Stir in the shredded tortillas to thicken the sauce. Then stir in the chopped cilantro, adjust seasoning and serve hot with corn tortillas or rice.

Variations
•If the sauce has thickened enough while simmering, no thickener may be necessary.
•Add 2 teaspoon achiote seasoning to the onion-tomato puree for added flavor. Bricks of achiote seasoning can be found at many Latin markets.
•The potatoes and carrots can be eliminated if you like.
•Canned tomatoes and tomatillos work just fine in this recipe.
•Two cups of chopped tomatoes can be used if you would like to eliminate the tomatillos.
•If you can't find guajillo chiles, use anchos or pasillas. Or substitute with 1 tablespoon of paprika and 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper.

Orlo Coots is Head Chef at Adair Country Inn & Restaurant. Enjoy his cooking Thursday through Monday. (603) 444-2600. Orlo can be reached at cheforlo@hotmail.com for any questions about this recipe or any other food-related questions you may have. Remember- whether cooking for 1 or for a crowd, make every bite count.

Celebrate Oktoberfest!

By Head Chef,Orlo Coots.

On Thursday, September 30, “Dine Around the World” with Adair Country Inn & Restaurant as we travel to Germany to celebrate Oktoberfest with a special three-course German menu. Oktoberfest has become one of the world’s great festivals and is celebrating its 200th anniversary. Due to several interruptions, though, this is the 177th time it has been held.

Oktoberfest began in 1810 to celebrate the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese of Saxony-Hildburghausen. In a rare occurrence, the general public was invited and over 40,000 Bavarians attended the festivities in front of the city gates of Munich. Through the years, the event has evolved into the largest festival in the world, featuring amusement rides, an agricultural fair held every three years, parades, concerts, costume and riflemen’s processions and, of course, the famous Oktoberfest beer tents sponsored by many of Germany’s top breweries. There is also an endless stream of hearty and satisfying German foods.

Oktoberfest celebrations are held throughout the world during September and October. Bratwursts, schnitzel, strudel, Black Forest cake, pretzels, cabbage and sauerkraut are just a few of the German specialties that are served and eaten by German food and beer lovers during the events. They are all washed down with seasonal Oktoberfest lager beers, brewed especially for the celebration. The traditional style guidelines describe an amber-gold lager, robust at 5.2 to 6 percent alcohol by volume, lagered for at least a month, with pronounced malt flavors from Vienna malts, usually accented by the German noble hops such as Hallertau and Tettnang. An Oktoberfest lager is brewed very much like the reddish-amber Marzen beer that was served at the Crown Prince's wedding in 1810.

For our Oktoberfest celebration at Adair Country Inn & Restaurant, we will present a traditional menu of bratwurst or potato pancakes, schnitzel or chicken paprikash accompanied with spaetzle and braised cabbage, and, for dessert, German Black Forest chocolate cake. I have been researching and testing recipes and will prepare everything from scratch for an authentic German flavor. To keep the celebration proper, plenty of Oktoberfest lager will be poured.

While it is not required, guests on September 30 should feel free to dress in suspenders and Lederhosen for the men and a dirndl, the traditional folk costume of Bavaria, for the women. We look forward to welcoming you to this celebration of German food, beer and fun. Prosit!
During Oktoberfest, plenty of pretzels are served, such as this Homemade Soft German Pretzel:

1 package of active dry yeast (1-1/2 tsp)
1 cup warm water
2-1/2 to 3 cups all-purpose flour
2 TB of salad oil
1 TB of sugar
6 TB of baking soda in 6 cups water
Coarse salt (kosher salt works great)

In a bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add 1-1/2 cups of the flour, the oil, and sugar. Beat for about 3 minutes to make a smooth batter. Gradually stir in enough of the remaining flour to form a soft dough. Turn out onto a floured board and knead until smooth and satiny (about 5 minutes) adding flour as needed to prevent sticking. Place dough in a greased bowl; turn over to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double (about 1 hour).

Punch down dough, turn out onto a floured board, and divide into 12 pieces. Shape each into a smooth ball by gently kneading. Then roll each into a smooth rope about 18 inches long, and twist into a pretzel shape. Place slightly apart on a greased baking sheet, turning loose ends underneath. Let rise, uncovered, in a warm, draft free area until puffy (about 25 minutes).

Meanwhile, in a 3-quart stainless steel or enameled pan (not aluminum) bring soda water to a boil; adjust water to keep water boiling gently. With a slotted spatula, lower 1 pretzel at a time into pan. Let simmer for 10 seconds on each side, then lift from water, drain briefly on spatula, and return to re-greased baking sheet. Let dry briefly, then sprinkle with coarse salt and let stand, uncovered, until all have simmered.

Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to racks; serve warm with medium hot mustard. Or let cool completely, wrap airtight, and freeze. To reheat, place frozen on ungreased baking sheets and bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes or until hot. Makes 1 dozen pretzels.

— Orlo Coots is Head Chef at Adair Country Inn & Restaurant. Enjoy his cooking by making a reservation at 603-444-2600. Orlo can be reached at cheforlo@hotmail.com for questions about this recipe or any other food-related questions. Remember — whether cooking for one or for a crowd, make every bite count.

Garden renewal project benefits Adair and Littleton Garden Club

BETHLEHEM — Beautiful gardens don’t happen by chance. They take thoughtful planning and regular maintenance, including the digging and dividing of perennials on a regular basis to ensure strong healthy plants with lush blooms.

This year, the Adair Country Inn & Restaurant and the Littleton Garden Club have teamed up to renew the Inn’s gardens. The project has a two-fold goal: helping to restore the gardens, which were created in 1927 by the Olmstead brothers, famous for designing Central Park in New York City and many other public and private gardens across the country, and acting as a fundraising project for the Garden Club, which will sell some of the divided perennials at their annual sale on September 25 at the Community House in Littleton, and use others of the plants in the many municipal gardens they maintain in the community.

“The Adair gardens need a lot of time and attention,” says innkeeper Ilja Chapman, “and I was looking for a group to help restore them.” She found that group in the Littleton Garden Club, an organization now in its 76th year, whose mission includes the beautification of Littleton and promoting environmental awareness. The almost two-dozen Garden Club members plant and care for 23 public gardens in the Littleton community, and provide outreach through garden programs with children and the elderly.

The lovely gardens and grounds at the Adair Country Inn & Restaurant were laid out in 1927 when the house was built as a wedding gift from Frank Hogan, a famous Washington, D.C. lawyer, to his only daughter, Dorothy Adair Guider. Over the years the gardens were maintained and added to by Mrs. Guider, a member of both the Littleton Garden Club and the White Mountain Garden Club, who died in 1991. The Inn is now owned by Betsy and Nick Young and managed by innkeepers Ilja and Brad Chapman.

On September 9, members of the Garden Club began what everyone hopes will be a multi-year project, digging and dividing the many perennials that border the Inn’s patio. Among the finds were phlox, bee balm, Siberian iris and peony.
“These plants are unique,” says Betsy Fraser, the incoming president of the Garden Club. “They are old-fashioned, not hybrids, and are quite desirable. Some of the peonies may be original to the garden.”

Sue Sorlucco, president of the Garden Club and a Master Gardener, agrees. She noted that the peonies, especially, have exceptionally large and sturdy roots and could, indeed, date from 1927. Peonies are known to be long-lived, some surviving 100 years or more.

The patio just off the Inn’s living room was chosen for the first year’s project. In good weather, meals are often served here and guests can relax and contemplate the far views of the mountains or the long sweep of lawns and the many gardens that are closer by.

On the day of the “dig” the patio was a flurry of activity. Spading forks, shovels and knives helped to make quick work of the digging, dividing and replanting that was taking place. Ilja, worried that all of the seeming disorder wouldn’t pay off, was quickly reassured by the gardeners that, “You always have to make a mess before you see results!”

Tammy Thompson, who oversees the gardens two days a week for Ilja, worked alongside the Garden Club members, offering her observations as caretaker of the gardens. Although she “can’t keep up with the gardens,” on a part-time basis because of her other duties at the Inn, she feels peaceful when working in them. “I always feel she’s (Mrs. Guider) watching me.”

The work of the Garden Club members didn’t end when they picked up their tools and loaded their cars with the perennials they received in exchange for dividing the plants. Some of the perennials will be planted in the many gardens that the Garden Club tends in Littleton. “It’s really nice to know that these historic plants will have a new life in some of the Club’s municipal gardens!” says Betsy Fraser.
The remainder will be potted up and offered for sale on September 25 on the Community House lawn during the Littleton Art Show. Along with the Adair plants, the Garden Club will be selling daffodil bulbs, candles, and garden gloves.

“We’d like this to be an ongoing project,” says Ilja. “We’re thrilled with what the Littleton Garden Club was able to accomplish and delighted that some of the Adair Country Inn & Restaurant’s plants will benefit the Garden Club as well as be shared with other gardeners.”

For information about the Adair Country Inn & Restaurant call 444-2600 or click on www.adairinn.com. For information about the Littleton Garden Club, including membership opportunities, call Sue Sorlucco at 444-2061 or email her at ssorlucco@roadrunner.com.

APPLES, APPLES AND APPLES

By Head Chef Orlo Coots

Here in the North Country, except for the fall foliage, nothing says autumn more than a crisp fresh apple picked right from the tree. A perfect apple mirrors a perfect fall day — cool and crisp.

Apples are one of the easiest fruits to pick. The trees grow low to the ground with the riper apples on the outside of the trees. This enables the entire family to enjoy the fun of apple picking. With numerous pick-your-own orchards throughout the state, there is no reason not to have a supply of locally grown apples in your kitchen. New Hampshire’s climate is perfect for many apple types. While not every apple is perfect for all occasions, the variety available covers the range of uses — eating, cooking, baking, storing or cooking into sauce.

When you are picking apples, do not judge ripeness by color. Different varieties ripen to different colors. Check with the orchard to learn what is ripe and the best apples for your needs. Ripeness is calculated from the days since the trees flowered. The apple farmer calculates this very carefully and will tell you where the ripe trees are. It is just as important to him as it is to you to know which trees are ripe and which ones are not.

When picking, carefully place the apples into your basket to prevent bruising. Do not wash the apples until you are going to use them, as moisture will increase the chance of spoilage. Keep the apples cool in your basement or the vegetable drawer of your refrigerator. Many apples will last for weeks properly stored, but not all. Make sure to ask which ones store well.

There are many different varieties here in New Hampshire that are available to pick now or in the next couple of weeks:

Early McIntosh — good for eating and baking. Empire — high quality apple for many culinary uses. Gala — a sweet eating apple. Ida Red — excellent for all uses. Jersey Mac — good for eating and baking. Jonagold — good for salads as well as cooking and baking. July Red — a nice eating apple. Honeycrisp — a nice crisp eating apple. McIntosh — great for eating, pies and applesauce. Macoun — good sweet eating apple. Paula Red — good for eating and baking. Pippin — best for cooking and baking. Puritan — good for eating and baking. Quini — good for eating and baking. Redcort — a nice eating apple.

While this list is by no means totally comprehensive, it is a good guide to determine what you can pick locally in September. Go to your orchard, pick some beautiful local apples and eat, bake or make into applesauce and enjoy the true flavor of fall in the North Country.

Try this recipe for a flavorful applesauce.

The first step is to choose apples that are naturally sweet, like Red Delicious, Gala, Fuji, Winesap, McIntosh, Yellow Delicious, and Mutsu, and always use a mixture — never just one type. If buying your apples at an orchard, ask for “seconds," "culls" or "drops." These are smaller apples, sometimes odd shapes or with imperfect appearance. They are perfect for applesauce and cost one-third to one-half the price of the top grade apples. Ask at the counter for them as they may be kept out back.