Gratin de pommes salé à l’alsacienne ~ a savoury Alsatian dish

“Here is the way to make a first-class, juicy apple pie. Use Northern Spies in the winter, if possible..”. (Haydn S. Pearson from Country Flavor Cookbook (1956).

Before they were called “heirlooms”, apples like the Northern Spies Mr. Pearson recommends for a good pie were the apples people grew where they lived—chosen because they worked best in that place, for their chosen purposes. These varieties were developed over many years to do one or two things very well. They tended not to be all-purpose.

Fortunately, there is renewed interest in growing heirloom apples commercially. TheArkansas Blacks featured in this recipe came from a local chain grocery. They are an excellent baking apple, with a distinctive flavour that is more pronounced cooked than when eaten fresh.

The less processed ingredient options are described here: Fruit, Cream, Apple Juice Concentrate, Butter, Nutmeg, Gruyère AOP, Vegetables.

Equipment

a Medium-Sized Heavy Pot with a Lid
a Small Heavy-Bottomed Pan
a Ceramic Baking Dish, buttered: The one in the photo measures 8″ x 8″ (about 20 cm x 20 cm
a Box Grater
a Flame Tamer (aka Heat Diffuser, Simmering Plate). The pot does not sit directly over the heat source and the jam can cook down very slowly over an even heat. Some versions of flame tamers are compatible with a smooth-top burner,

Ingredients

2 pounds (before they are peeled and sliced) of Organic Arkansas Blacks (about 1 kg)
3 Tablespoons of Homemade Apple Juice Concentrate: thefoodlessprocessed recipe for concentrate is here: Apple Juice Concentrate.
1 Tablespoon of Lemon Juice
1 small Organic Yellow Onion, sliced very thinly
2 Tablespoons of European-Style Unsalted Butter, plus a little to butter the baking dish
1/2 Cup of Organic Heavy Cream (120 ml)
3 Tablespoons of Dry White Wine
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Organic Ground Nutmeg or Freshly Ground Nutmeg
Several stems of Organic Fresh Thyme Leaves
1/2 teaspoon of Caraway Seeds
1/2 Cup (about 60 g) of Gruyère AOP, grated over the large holes of a grater

Making the Apple Gratin

Note: Commercial apples, either by nature or as a result of prolonged storage, tend to be dry and release little juice in cooking. Therefore, this recipe includes a step where the apples are heated a little with lemon juice and apple concentrate to counteract their dryness. This step isn’t necessary if you have a good baking apple.

Gas or Convection Oven: thefoodlessprocessed uses a gas oven. The conversions from Fahrenheit to Celsius do not attempt to adjust for differences between baking in a gas or convection oven. I have no experience using a convection oven, and leave adjustments to the better judgement of you who do have.

Preheat the oven to 350 F (175 C).
Peel and slice the apples and put them in the pot along with the lemon juice and apple juice concentrate.
Place the pot of apples on the flame tamer, and cook the apples gently, covered, over very low heat, for about 5 minutes, or until they are just warmed and beginning to release their juices. They should not begin to soften. Set them aside.
Melt the butter in the skillet and sauté the onion slices until they are lightly browned. Set them aside.
Place half of the apples in the buttered baking dish and scatter half of the onions over them.
Strip the leaves from a few stems of fresh thyme and scatter them, along with the caraway seeds, over the apples. Grind fresh black pepper over them and a bit of nutmeg.
Spread the rest of the apples on top and scatter them with the rest of the onions.
Pour the cream and the white wine over the dish.
Scatter the Gruyère over the top and some more fresh thyme leaves over the cheese. Grind over all some more black pepper and a bit more nutmeg.

Bake the gratin for about 35 minutes on the middle rack of the oven. The apples will be tender and the cheese, cream and wine bubbling.
Spoon some of the apples’ juices, cream and wine over each serving.

thefoodlessprocessed