With October here and fall squarely upon us (at least for those of us who live above 35°N) our thoughts turn to raking leaves, carving pumpkins, and eating mountains and mountains of Fun Sized Three Musketeers bars.
Fall is one of my top three favorite seasons and Halloween is definitely one of my all-time favorite holidays. For me, nothing quite compares to that first time I walk into a store, find myself greeted by orange and black decorations, and I suddenly realize that the best holiday ever is only four and a half short months away.
It’s also about that time I realize one of the most basic icons of fall is here: the apple. Oh sure, I know that in this day and age that apples are available all the time. But there’s nothing quite like a fall apple to put the rest to shame. And there’s nothing quite like a honeycrisp apple to put fall apples to shame.
I first heard of this apple variety perhaps five years ago when Stephanie asked, “Have you ever had a honeycrisp?” “Honeycrisp? Isn’t that a breakfast cereal?” “No, it’s an apple. An unbelievable apple.” Whatever. An apple’s an apple, right? Wrong. I knew something was different when I headed to the store to check it out and there they were. Each was the size of a basketball and they cost about twenty-seven dollars a pound. (Stay with me, I’m only exaggerating. The honeycrisps were only twenty-four dollars a pound.)
I exhausted the week’s fruit budget by buying two of them. I cooled them in the fridge (which is about the only way I’ll enjoy an apple) then took one to work the next day. I had no idea what I was in store for. I took my first bite and noticed immediately this was handily the most crisp apple I’d ever sunk teeth into. It was simultaneously sweet and tart and all I could think was: this is the perfect embodiment of autumn in a fruit.
If you’ve tried these before, let me know if you agree with me. If not, save up your allowance and hunt them down. Unlike some varieties (the Red so-called Delicious apple comes to mind) you might not be immediately successful in your quest. But keep it up and you will be rewarded. Once you try them, stop back here and let me know, “How d’ya like them apples?”
on October 7, 2008 at 6:32 am
I defintely agree with you on the apple front… lately I have been hooked on Royal Gala Apples and they have to be cold!!
on October 7, 2008 at 7:19 am
I love honeycrisps – although they aren’t quite $24 a pound here!
I also really love Pink Lady apples, if you have not tried one, see if you can find them.
on October 7, 2008 at 7:21 am
I like HoneyCrisp apples, but my favorite is Macintosh! I love them and can’t wait to enjoy them every Fall! I like my apples cold too!
on October 7, 2008 at 8:24 am
Next to sneaking in a caramel apple, the best part of going to an orchard is being able to select from apple varieties that I haven’t tried before. You never know what you’ll find!
on October 7, 2008 at 8:30 am
Without a DOUBT Honeycrisps are the best darn apple out there!! And being somewhat “old school” I love the fact that you can only buy them in the fall for a short period of time. So you get to gorge yourself on them for about a month or so and then you have to wait a whole year until they come back.
I wish more things were like that….. remember canceling everything so that you wouldn’t miss a “Charlie Brown Christmas”… or “The Wizard of Oz”? 🙂
on October 7, 2008 at 9:01 am
Pink Lady = Best Apple. 🙂
on October 7, 2008 at 9:11 am
I’ve never heard of Honeycrisp apples. My next trip to the store, I will keep my eye out for them. Thanks!
on October 7, 2008 at 9:42 am
Mmmmm….honeycrisps are my favorite apple! I love them!
on October 7, 2008 at 10:24 am
i’d say this is my favorite type of apple, but i’m just not an apple person! but if i do eat an apple, and i had a choice of any apple, i’d choose this one!
on October 7, 2008 at 11:19 am
ok, now I’ll be hunting these down at the grocery store. I’ve always been a delicious girl myself.
AND don’t get me started on Halloween! def my FAV!
on October 7, 2008 at 11:46 am
I actually just bought only one at the store this weekend! The other varieties were .99 cents a pound, so I loaded up on those. The honeycrisp was huge, I didn’t even look at the receipt to see if it was like $5.00 or something. I took it out of the refrigerator, and cut it up in as thin of slices to make it seem like there was a ton. I set them on the table at lunch. All I had to say to my kids was “this is a honeycrisp” and they went crazy! Your right Charlie, I never heard of them before you mentioned them to me, and I am so glad you did! You can give me a few for Christmas this year!
on October 7, 2008 at 3:01 pm
Yum – had one for breakfast sprinkled with cinnamon and splenda!
on October 8, 2008 at 2:49 pm
Wow, I have never craved an apple until after I read this! 🙂
on October 9, 2008 at 8:20 pm
I’ve seen these apples but I’ve never tried them. I’ll definitly pick some up next time I see them and have a spare $24.00. 🙂
on October 11, 2008 at 5:09 pm
I think Charlie is the one who turned me onto the Honeycrisp. Right now, they are about $3.00/lb here.
Until Honeycrisp, my favs used to be New Zealand Granny Smith. You can’t find them much anymore and even if you could, the Locovore Secret Police would hunt you down and glare at you until you melted.
I agree with Stephanie, I like the seasonal nature of these things. I hope they don’t spoil that flavor in the name of making them more bruise resistant.
on October 21, 2008 at 12:37 pm
Yum yum Honey Crisps! I bought two – I recall they were $2.49/lb. and each one probably weighed a pound! They are the best – crisp, sweet/tart, incredibly juicy. They’re so big that I only eat a half at a time, finished off one for lunch today.
I don’t like Red Delicious at all any more – I think they have been genetically manipulated so they are pretty, but don’t have the taste I recall from years ago.
on October 23, 2008 at 4:34 pm
Honeycrisp apples are as big as your head, it’s true, but they are THE BEST. I buy three a week, and eat half of one at a time. At $2.99 a lb., it adds up, but the fabulous flavor is worth it.
I’ll be sad when they’re gone for the season. I’ll go back to my standard Fuji, but they just aren’t as good. I’m officially spoiled.
on October 25, 2008 at 8:48 am
Heard about HCs last fall when my young niece got the first crop from her orchard. Local store got ONE shipment in so we tried them. This spring we planted our own tree as they are supposed to grow in our zone and are good for storage(if there are any left)..
on October 27, 2008 at 11:34 am
The only thing better than a HC apple, is a HC apple that’s shared. Thanks for sharing yours with me 🙂 It tasted like Halloween-time to me.
on November 6, 2008 at 3:23 pm
I had a taste for apples this morning for breakfast… had half a honeycrisp in the fridge. Peeled and sliced it, tossed in frying pan with a pat of butter and some nutmeg and cinammon. Sauteed for maybe five minutes, tossing several times. Sweet, slightly “toasted”, crunchy/soft. YUM.
on December 11, 2008 at 4:23 pm
I wanted to thank you for recommending Honeycrisp apples. They are simply delicious and a real hit with my kids! We just fought over the last apple and are decidedly heartbroken! They were hard enough to nab at the store when in season so I’m not expecting to enjoy them again any time soon.
Thanks again for the awesome food find.