Why Windfalls Are Worth the Bother

By mid-October, anyone with an apple tree — or a neighbour with one — is usually knee-deep in fruit. The best apples go into the fruit bowl or the shed for storing, but the windfalls pile up beneath: bruised, bashed and utterly delicious once you know what to do with them. A windfall is not a bad apple. Cut away the damaged flesh and you are left with fruit as sweet, sharp and aromatic as anything picked by hand.

Windfalls do two things exceptionally well: pudding and chutney. Soft fruit breaks down beautifully under a buttery crumble, while sharp cookers are naturally high in pectin and acid — exactly what a chutney needs to set thickly and keep well. Nothing is wasted, and the kitchen fills with the best smells of autumn.

Sorting and Preparing Your Apples

Work through your haul the day you gather it, if you can. Spread the apples out and give each one a once-over.

• Keep firm, dry, unbruised fruit — these will store for weeks in a cool, dark, frost-free place, laid out singly on slatted trays.
• Use straight away anything bruised, split or scabby. Cut away the damage and use the rest.
• Compost anything mouldy or fermenting. Brown rot spreads fast and one bad apple really does spoil the bunch.

Wash the fruit, then peel, core and chop. A squeeze of lemon juice in the bowl stops peeled pieces browning while you work.

A Proper Autumn Apple Crumble

A crumble is the fastest route from windfall to pudding. This serves six comfortably.

For the fruit:

• 1kg prepared cooking apples, sliced
• 75g caster sugar, or to taste
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon and 2 tbsp water

For the topping:

• 200g plain flour and 100g cold unsalted butter, cubed
• 75g demerara sugar and 50g porridge oats

Heat the oven to 190C (170C fan, gas mark 5). Toss the apples with the caster sugar, cinnamon and water in a 1.5-litre ovenproof dish and level the surface. Rub the butter into the flour until it looks like coarse breadcrumbs, then stir through the demerara and oats. Scatter over the fruit without pressing down — you want a craggy, pebbled surface, not a pastry lid. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes until deep gold and bubbling at the edges. Rest for ten minutes before serving with custard, cream or vanilla ice cream.

Getting the Topping Right Every Time

Cold butter and a light touch give the best texture; overworking makes it heavy. If the top browns too quickly, tent it with foil for the last ten minutes. Blackberries, damsons or a handful of raisins stirred through the apples add welcome sharpness, and a pinch of ground cloves lifts the whole dish. The topping can be made in bulk and frozen — bake an assembled, unbaked crumble from frozen at 180C for 55 to 60 minutes.

Spiced Apple Chutney for the Store Cupboard

This makes about four 340g jars and improves enormously with age.

• 1.5kg prepared windfall apples, peeled, cored and diced
• 500g onions, chopped, and 300g sultanas
• 400g light muscovado sugar
• 500ml cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp mustard seeds, 1 tbsp ground ginger, 1 tsp ground allspice, 1 tsp salt

Put everything in a wide preserving pan and bring to a gentle simmer, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Cook uncovered for 1½ to 2 hours, stirring often towards the end, until the mixture is thick and glossy and a wooden spoon drawn through it leaves a clear channel. Add a splash of water if it threatens to catch.

Potting, Labelling and Storing

Sterilise your jars by washing them in hot soapy water, rinsing well and drying them in an oven at 140C for fifteen minutes. Fill while still warm, leaving a small headspace, and seal with vinegar-proof lids. Label with the date and tuck the jars away in a cool, dark cupboard for at least four weeks before opening — the sharpness mellows and the spices settle. Unopened, it keeps for a year; once opened, keep it in the fridge. A jar with a handwritten label makes a fine Christmas gift, and the crumble, frankly, will not last the evening.