TOFFEE APPLES AND FRESH FRUIT JELLY SWEETS

Apples are plentiful this year,my old Bramley is drooping under the weight of ripening fruit and the neighbours have been given a carte blanch to help themselves .

Looking out of the window today it is easy to begin thinking about such autumn festivities as bonfire night,but before this exciting feast day there will be church and school harvest festivals,and the usual autumn bring and buy stall.

Here are a couple of recipes for good old fashioned seasonal sweets,both will look great on a stall or as a contribution to a bonfire party .

TOFFEE APPLES

1ib granulated sugar

2 oz butter

2 teaspoons white cider vinegar

1 tablespoon of golden syrup

quarter pint of water

6-8 eating apples + wooden sticks

place all the ingredients except the apples and the sticks in to a heavy pan and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved. Boil rapidly for about 5 minutes or until a little of the mixture dropped into cod water forms hard brittle threads. Use a sugar thermometer if you have one,it removes the guess work, 280oF or 140oC.

Wipe each apple and push a stick in to the core. Dip into the toffee mixture. Swirl around to remove any excess mixture then place on a buttered tin or on some non stick baking paper to set.

Eat on the day they are made.

REAL FRUIT JELLIES

All the farmers wives in our village made these in the autumn,as well as the basic ingredients they would sometimes use a little elderberry juice to make red jellies and blackberry juice for purple ones.

2 lb apples,plums or pears.

Granulated sugar

juice of a lemon

caster sugar for coating.

Place the prepared fruit in to a pan with just sufficient water to prevent sticking( AT THIS POINT ADD THE BLACKBERRY JUICE INSTEAD OF WATER IF YOU LIKE) or until the fruit is completely soft. Sieve the fruit to make a purree.

Weigh the purree and add an equal amount of granulated sugar and stir in the lemon juice. Place a heavy pan over a low heat to dissolve the sugar then increase the heat and boil rapidly until a thick paste forms and the mixture is on the pint of setting. Pour the mixture into a shallow tin lined with non stick baking paper and leave until cold. Cut into shapes and roll in caster sugar. Store in an air tight tin.

Both of these sweet can have artificial colouring and flavouring added to them ,to my mind this defeats the object of making them yourself,hey ho! Each man to the devil his own way!