The Pink Lady

The Pink Lady

Although, I mostly intend to write about recipes and their outcomes, I thought it appropriate to write about favorite ingredients as well. When it comes to apples, there are of course different schools of thought on which apples are best for each type of cooking.  For baking, Rachel Ray suggests McIntosh for instance. I have tried her recipe for stuffed apples using the McIntosh variety and found them to be too mushy and grainy.  I hope to resolve this undesirable outcome by trying a naturally firmer variety of apple for baking.  I have found a favorite apple and I am looking forward to trying it in different apple recipes to test its versatility.  This apple is called, the Pink Lady.  It is a sweet-tart variety, characterized by its unique pink skin.  They usually appear an eye-catching coral color, which is difficult to ignore when choosing between all the other apples that are either green or red.  It is a cross between an Australian apple called the Lady Williams and the familiar Golden Delicious.  I enjoy it because it is firm, never grainy, and has a combination of sweet and tart that pairs well with savory or sweet.    As a snack apple, it is ideal because it is sweet enough to pair with cheese (I prefer sharp white cheddar), yet tart enough for a sweet dip such as caramel or peanut butter.  This Kitchen Chart for Apples marks it for use as "a dessert apple with cheese, as a snack on its own, in salads or for pies." I look forward to enjoying the Pink Lady in my favorite apple recipes as much as I enjoy sharing one with my favorite "Little Lady", Emma Kate.