This past week marked the beginning of COMPOTE. The star-studded event attracts luminaries from across breeds. Tree fruits from this season assembled on E street's Cutting Board and The Stovetop to discuss the results of the 2013 harvest. A dozen representatives were present. They divided into small, working groups with inch-sized pieces repesenting Gala, Honey Crisp, Pineapple Quince and Bartlet families. Granny Smith was there to advocate for the needs of older apples while twin apples from the Dwarf family lobbed apples for minority rights. The Pear Group insisted apples were over represented, but leaned in anyway.
A myriad of issues were discussed, including but not limited to:
Spicing up your apple sauce
Maple Syrup: It's from a tree too
Compassionate Peeling
Avoiding Appearence of Apple: Apples and Over Representation in Preserves
and lastly,
The Challenges of Summer: Stone Fruit or Just Stoned
Near the end of the assembly, dried stone fruits made an appearance. In the last minute, the Colorado Apricots were, in fact, stoned. The Dried Cherries fill-in started out on a tart note. But in the end everyone thought they had the sweetest results of any fruit at COMPOTE.
Applications for next years COMPOTE will be considered starting at the end of August, 2014.
COMPOTE: Annual Report
COMPOTE's found our working groups achieved the best results when a wide variety of tree fruits were represented. Experienced fruit typically achieves better results. The more bruised they look, the sweeter they taste.
12 apples, quince, pears or large pieces of stone fruit, preferably of different varieties.
1-2 cinnamon sticks
2 star anise
4 cardamom pods
1/2 cup tart dried cherries
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup apple juice
1/3 cup maple syrup (optional)
Core and cut apples into 1 inch cubes. You can peel the apples if you want to. Place in pot with spices, apple and lemon juice. Cover and leave on medium heat for 8 minutes. When you return, the liquid should be bubbling. Stir and reduce to a simmer. Leave for 30 minutes to 2 hours, depending on desired consistency. Add cherries 10 minutes before removing from heat. When done, place in sealed jars. Cool, then refrigerate for up to a month. Eat with ice cream, cheese, yogurt, granola, oatmeal, pancakes or on it's own.
