Fall means all things apple

Nothing feels more like fall in Michigan than apple orchards and cider mills. The smell of donuts, the crisp feel to the air, the tractor rides, the unpredictable weather–it’s all symbolic of the changing seasons. Maybe that’s why an apple-picking trip has become somewhat of a tradition in our house. Fall becomes a time of all things apple.

This wasn’t our doing, actually. I can’t take credit for the apple trips. My in-laws suggested it the first year. The second year, they asked us again. By the third year, we were just expecting to go with them. By the fourth year, things got busy and we missed a trip.  We’ve not always made the trip with my in-laws, but we try.

I’ve also made it a point to take a specific picture of my children each year in the orchard. It’s neat to see how they’ve changed in comparison to trees and apples.

There are several things that happen every year.

• The kids eat way too many apples. Especially my oldest daughter. She’s holding an apple in four of these pictures and I’m sure that wasn’t her one and only apple. Also, did you know apples are loaded with sugar? Yeah, so it’s basically like letting them eat a bunch of ice cream.
• The perfect apple is at the top of the tree. It’s weird that the trees could be LOADED with apples and my girls see right past them to the perfect apple that is always out of their reach. Inevitably, my husband *has* to pick them up to get it. I think it’s a game.
• We pick WAY too many apples. We always thing a half-bushel looks small so we go for the full. Every year. Which results in the next item.
• Our house turns into the apple-version of the shrimp scene in Forrest Gump.

In the last few weeks, I’ve had to use up all of those apples so I’ve baked, made and eaten all things apple.

I plan to share my apple stuff with you this week, so look out of apple sauce, apple bread, apple muffins, apple pie and caramel apple dip information coming your way.

What are some of your favorite apple recipes?