Fried Apples and Friendship
I don’t consider myself an unfriendly person, but I am selective when it comes to forming lasting friendships. There is in my view a huge difference between people we call friends and those we call acquaintances. Friends are those with whom we share “enduring affection, esteem, intimacy and trust.” That definition according to Britannica and I must agree.
An acquaintance on the other hand is someone you know and see on occasion. Most people make hundreds of acquaintances in a lifetime, and many of those may be good people. However, only a few of the people we meet ignite a spark that results in lasting friendship.
Such a spark struck my core when I met Rose, the Librarian in a neighboring town when the library hosted Kent Haruf’s 1984 book signing for his first published novel, The Tie That Binds. Haruf, who died of cancer in 2014, went on to write many other novels, including Plainsong, which was adapted into a Hallmark Hall of Fame movie in 2004, and later a play performed at the Denver (Colorado) Performing Arts Center.
In conversation following Haruf’s book signing, Rose impressed me as a very intelligent, lovely woman with a sparkling personality. I felt we had much in common and I wanted to know her better. So, when she told me she was publishing a cooking newsletter entitled Rose’s Good Food Gazette, I saw it as an opportunity for my snoopy reporter skills to delve into her privacy. I ask her if she would allow me to write a piece about her newsletter for my newspaper, The Herald, and she agreed.
Among the many interesting tidbits I learned in addition to the hows and whys of her publishing project, was that she quit her job as Librarian for the Denver Post to travel to Alaska in a Volkswagen minibus with a group of friends. While there, she took a job as a fish cook and nearly met the requirements, one of which was peeing on the ice, to become an Eskimo. On returning to Denver, she became a cab driver, was robbed at gunpoint twice, and met her husband Bob, who she remains married to.
I left that interview feeling as though I had met a friend for life and thus far that feeling holds true even though we now live 12 hours apart, she in Arizona and I in Colorado. We still share many things in common, including a love of cooking, writing and research, although she is much better at all three than I am.
The other day, a blue three-ring binder fell off the bottom shelf of the island in my kitchen. I opened it to discover it contained my copies of Rose’s Good Food Gazette. I started reading and was taken back in time to the day a meeting sparked a friendship that I continue to cherish.
One edition of the Gazette contained a recipe for “Mama Sugar’s Southern Fried Apples.” Rose explained that Mama Sugar was her paternal grandmother, and these fried apples were her specialty. Rose noted that she was only able to come close to making these “hot and rich and chewy caramelized apple slices” after having been told how some 50 times. Finally, Mama Sugar told her the secret. “I was frying apples one day and the dog got into the chicken yard, so I took out after him and let those apples almost burn. They tasted so good I made them that way ever since.”
Wanting to make the recipe as close as possible, and after fretting for some time over not having chickens for the dog to chase, I settled for my cat Glory chasing the local Robins. I put the apples on then headed for the back door in time to see Glory creeping on her belly toward a Robin. I went back into the house, grabbed the broom and flew back through the door giving my best save-the-bird yell. Problem was that instead of scaring the cat, I scared the Robin off. When Glory’s bird skills failed me, I decided to wing it (pun intended), and I think my rendition of Rose’s fried apple recipe turned out fine.
As a special note, instead of cutting this recipe down to serve one, I opted to use the amounts printed in the original recipe, which Rose indicated serves 4. I reasoned that any leftover fried apples would keep well in the refrigerator and they are yummy enough that even though Rose suggested serving them with pork or ham, they make a lovely desert following any meal.
Mama Sugar’s Southern Fried Apple
Ingredients:
6 tart cooking apples*
3 Tablespoons butter
½ Cup Sugar (I used brown sugar)
Mace or cinnamon to taste (Since I did not have Mace, I used nutmeg)
Directions:
1. Wash apples, but do not peel. Cut into 1/8th sections and remove cores (a melon baller works well for this).
2. Melt butter in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. When butter stops foaming, add apples. Do not crowd them too much. Sauté until lightly browned (10-15 minutes)
3. Reduce heat to medium. Sprinkle sugar and spices over apples. Stir gently to mix.
4. Cover and cook until syrup caramelizes and apples are glazed (About 15 minutes). Serves 4
· Jonathan apples work best in this recipe. Granny Smith are tart enough, but don’t hold their shape. Delicious apples do not work.
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