Appelmoes / Compote

Appelmoes or stewed apple was a favourite dessert of mine when I was a kid. But it is one of those items that disappeared from the home menu over time… Fortunately we have a village market very close to us every Saturday morning in Mangere village and in-season apples can be found there for less than a dollar a kilo (ironic because the same apples still cost $2-3.00 a kilo in Pack ‘n’ Save not 500m from the market). So now when ever we see the price of apples go under $1.00/kg we buy a large bag full (about 6kg).
To make the appelmoes:

• peel and core the apples
• cut them into quarters
• add a little water
• add them to a large pot over a medium heat and cover, you want the mixture to simmer.
• add honey and cinnamon to taste.
• Mum adds an egg or two to her appelmoes, which helps thicken it a bit but our family prefers without.

Once enough apple has softened into a jelly like state you can use a potato masher to break up the rest with a potato masher, this has the added benefit of leaving nice apple chunks in the mix. When the mixture has cooled we measure it out (what hasn’t been eaten already!) into plastic containers to be frozen for a later date.
Apples can be substituted with pears or a mixture of apple and pear. The honey is optional as there’s plenty of sugar in the apples but what can I say… We’re a family of sweet tooths!