“This was Jo’s favourite refuge; and here she loved to retire with half a dozen russets and a nice book” excerpt taken from Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
A short time ago my 10 year old daughter and I read Little Women together. I had forgotten what a lovely book it is so full of cues to the social arrangements and situations of Northern families during the American Civil War.
Our reading sessions are full of questions such as “why does she call her best dress a ‘poplin’?” or “What are rubbers?” (Well honey, in this context, they are a cover ladies wore over their shoes to keep them clean when they went outside) and, relevant to this discussion, “what are russets?”.
Russets are apples with reddish-brown roughened skins. The rough patches are called ‘russet’ and some varieties that are more prone to russetting (as it is known) are considered to be part of the ‘russet’ group. Russets are considered by many to be the best eating apples and were so well known in Louise May Alcott’s time that no explanation of what they were was necessary.
Russets are now rarely seen at mainstream supermarkets and fruit sellers as consumers demand only blemish-free shiny-skinned apples. This has contributed to fewer varieties of apple being available than in our grandparents’ time.
Do you remember eating apples with harmless blemishes as a child? One of my favourite childhood memories is stopping at well-known apple producing town, Donnybrook, Western Australia, on the way back from our summer holidays to pick up a large bag of apples. The apples would come complete with little rough brown bumps, which I would pick off with my fingernails. It was normal for an apple to have a rough patch which I don’t remember thinking was particularly unusual.
Now, however, I carefully pick over the Pink Ladies and the Fujis at the store to ensure the apples I take home are smooth, have even colour and have no lumps or bumps.
If we are to take a cue from heritage apple growers then perhaps we should seek out older varieties, such as russets, from farmer’s markets and experience, they say, a superior taste – something like our grandparents would remember.
7 comments:
I remember Russet Apples. We had a tree in our woods that we walked to every fall and picked some and took them home to munch on. They were very tasty, as I recall.
I forgot I just finished reading "Little Women" in November. I enjoyed it also.
Russet apples were the most scruptious apples. We loved it when they came in in Autumn. The other we loved was the Macintosh's Red which came from Canada I think. It had snow white flesh with streaks of red through it.We always had them for Christmas in Scotland
I don't know if I have ever had Russet apples. I know what you mean though about wanting to only choose the best fruits and vegetables from the grocery store. I think it is because they cost so much, may as well get the best ones. Not so when they are home grown. We seldom wasted any of it. I really miss home grown food.
I dont think I have ever had a "real
" apple, guess I should head out to an orchard one day...
It's funny, because we have russet potatos as well! It is odd that we have grown so used to large unnaturally shiny fruit and veg, which of course we have pesticides and other chemicals to thank for. Hopefully as we all begin to accept the fruit in its natural state we can lessen our need for pesticides and the like and help to support local organic farmers, cuz a little blemish doesn't hurt, I mean they airbrush people and make fruit unrealistic, let's take back the right to have blemishes on our food AND face, no false perfection!
Oh, and I want to plant up a small orchard this spring, so I need to see if we grow russest in the states.
A timely topic! I have just finished a book called Shopped about supermarkets and how they have actually reduced our range of fresh, whole food while increasing all the other over-processed stuff! They wouldn't stock a russet and I think we are all the poorer for it.
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