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Susan Jung

Text Susan Jung / Photography Jonathan Maloney / Styling Nellie Ming Lee
 
Apples are one type of fruit that I like much better cooked than raw. An apple on a fruit platter leaves me cold, but I love apple desserts and preserves.
 
Apple turnovers (pictured)
500 grams all-butter puff pastry
Plain (all-purpose) flour, for rolling
3 Fuji apples (about 650 grams)
180 grams granulated sugar
30 grams unsalted butter
30ml fresh lemon juice, divided
The finely grated zest of ¼ of a lemon
1 egg, for brushing
Brown crystal sugar, for sprinkling
Icing sugar, for dusting (optional)
Make the filling first, so it has time to cool. Peel the apples, remove and discard the cores, then cut them into 5mm dice. Put the granulated sugar in a medium-sized pan then add a little water - the exact amount doesn't matter; you just need enough to dampen the sugar. Stir in 10ml of fresh lemon juice. Place the pan over a low flame and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sugar starts to melt. Stop stirring and swirl the pan, so the sugar melts evenly. Use a pastry brush dipped in hot water to brush the sugar crystals from the sides of the pot. Turn the heat to medium and cook without stirring until the sugar starts to caramelise. Swirl the pan occasionally. Cook until the caramel is medium-dark amber then carefully add the diced apple. Stir the ingredients then turn the heat to low. The caramel will become watery initially as the juice comes out of the apple. Cook, stirring frequently, until the caramel thickens enough to coat the apple. Remove from the flame and stir in the butter and the rest of the lemon juice. Cool to lukewarm then stir in the lemon zest.
On a lightly floured work surface, roll the puff pastry so it's about 3mm thick. Carefully transfer the sheet to a baking pan lined with parchment paper and chill for at least 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees Celsius. Whisk the egg with about 15ml of water.
Put the dough on the work surface and use fluted pastry cutters (about 9cm to 10cm in diameter) to cut as many circles as possible (you should get from eight to 10). Use a small pastry brush to very lightly brush the beaten egg around the perimeter of each circle. Put a heaped spoonful of the apple filling off-centre on each circle then fold the pastry over it to enclose it, stretching it very slightly if needed, so you have well-filled half circles. Press on the edges firmly to seal them, then place the turnovers on the parchment-lined baking tray. Brush the turnovers very lightly with beaten egg, sprinkle with a little crystal sugar then use a sharp paring knife to cut three slits in the top of each one. Place the tray in the oven and reduce the heat to 200 degrees. Bake the pastries until they are golden brown, puffed and firm to the touch; lift a few of the turnovers to make sure the bottoms are browned. Cool for about 10 minutes then sprinkle lightly with icing sugar before serving.
There will be some puff-pastry scraps left over after cutting out the circles. Press them together, trying to maintain the layering, then wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour. The scraps can be rolled out again and more turnovers made with the remaining filling. Any leftover filling is good with plain yogurt or warmed and served over vanilla ice cream.
 
Apple butter
Almost every winter, I make a batch of apple butter and preserve it to use throughout the year. It works well in apple tarts or mixed with plain yogurt. My favourite way of eating it is as a tartine: take a baguette (slightly stale is fine) and cut it in half lengthwise. Spread butter on it, then a layer of apple butter and sprinkle lightly with granulated sugar or cinnamon sugar. Bake at 180 degrees for about five minutes - just long enough to crisp up the bread and melt the butter. Cool slightly before eating.
Making apple butter is easiest if you have a food mill - a sieve that, with a rotating blade, forces soft mixtures through the holes. There's no need to peel the fruit because the seeds and peel will be strained out. If you don't have a food mill, peel the apples and remove the cores before cooking them. For a more complex flavour, use a mix of apples.
3kg apples 
1 litre unsweetened apple juice
Sugar (white, soft brown or a mixture of both), as needed
½ tsp fine sea salt
45ml fresh lemon juice
Scrub the apples well then chop them roughly (remove the peel and cores first, if you don't have a food mill). Put the fruit and apple juice in a large pan and bring to the boil. Lower the heat, cover partially with the lid and simmer, stirring often. Cook until the apple pieces are very soft. Ladle the ingredients into a food mill set over a bowl to catch the purée. If you don't have a food mill, use a potato masher to crush the apple to a purée. Weigh the sieved apple mixture and for every 500 grams of purée, mix in 300 grams of sugar. Put the purée, sugar and salt into the pan and simmer over a low flame, stirring often, until the mixture is thick enough to coat a wooden spoon. Stir in the lemon juice then ladle the mixture into sterilised canning jars and cover tightly with sterilised lids (soak the jars and lids in boiling water for a few minutes then drain and air-dry). Process the jars in a water bath: put a dishcloth in the base of a deep pan, put the jars in one layer on the cloth and cover with hot water. Bring to the boil then lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Take the jars out of the water and cool before storing them.
 


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Susan Jung's recipes

Baked apple recipes: apple turnovers and apple butter

Apple turnovers

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Raw apples may be underwhelming but baking can transform them into something wonderful


Raw apples may be underwhelming but baking can transform them into something wonderful.


Dessert recipes

Baked apple recipes: apple turnovers and apple butter

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Raw apples may be underwhelming but baking can transform them into something wonderful

Raw apples may be underwhelming but baking can transform them into something wonderful