Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, September 14, 1994 TAG: 9409150006
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By ALMENA HUGHES STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Frances Murray - not the town's former mayor, she clarifies - is for the 17th year co-chairing the event with her husband, Homer G. Murray, who also serves on the Franklin County Board of Supervisors. Proceeds primarily benefit the Boones Mill Lions Club, which is part of the international volunteers' organization known for its aid to the blind and visually impaired.
As its name implies, apples will play a prominent role in Boones Mill's one-day event. Murray said that volunteers will start well before daybreak manning big copper kettles in order to allow the necessary 12 hours boiling time for their homemade apple butter. There'll also be fresh-pressed apple juice and cider, and among various bake sale items, several variations of apple pies and cakes. Murray said one of her personal favorites is a moist apple nut cake that her 90-year-old sister-in-law/aunt, Minnie Kesler Murray, still makes. Another is an old-fashioned stack cake that she says is well worth the time it takes to prepare.
One of the festival's best-sellers is its plump, juicy fried apple pies, made with dried apples. But, sorry, not even Murray could pry the secret recipe for these goodies from their makers.
In addition to the apple fare, the festival will offer hot dogs, Brunswick stew, country ham biscuits - which run out fast and early, Murray warned - and a sit-down barbecue chicken dinner at the Lions Building. There'll also be lots of family- and children-oriented events and entertainment, an art show, crafts, a parade led by Channel 7's "Mornin'" host, Larry Dowdy, and the crowning of Miss Apple Festival 1994.
Overall, it's a wonderful day of amazing community spirit, Murray said. Now if she could just find someone to make some apple dumplings like she had at the Highland Maple Festival, she sighed. Oh well, maybe next year.
Apples, with their range of colors, flavors and textures, really are amazingly versatile ingredients. In her excellent "Sheila Lukins All Around the World Cookbook" (Workman Publishing), the best-selling author uses them in a crab cocktail inspired by a meal she had at a St. Petersburg (Russia) restaurant. Lukins' 440-plus recipe compilation, sparked by her travels to 33 countries, is a fine blend of authentic international flavors and food experiences that is both entertaining and doable.
Mark Bittman's "Fish: The Complete Guide to Buying and Cooking" (Macmillan General Reference) pairs apples with - you guessed it - fish. Bittman's penchant for simplicity combined with his wealth of information on fish-cooking techniques, nutrition and substitutions make his one-track cookbook a comprehensive one-stop resource that is definitely on track.
Both "The Sensuous Vegetarian Barbecue" (Avery Publishing Group) and the American Harvest quarterly newsletter offer a wealth of cooking possibilities for apples and other fruits and vegetables. The cookbook is available at bookstores or by calling (800) 548-5757. The newsletter can be ordered from (708) 934-7655.
recipes for:
ONE-PAN HARVEST SUPPER
APPLE-GLAZED SPARERIBS
MONKFISH BAKED WITH APPLES AND ZUCCHINI
SASHA'S APPLE CRAB COCKTAIL
APPLE BREAD TART
WARM CHOCOLATE DIPPING SAUCE WITH APPLE KABOBS
CRANBERRY APPLE SORBET
SPICED APPLE PUDDING
DULCINEA'S APPLES
APPLE BREAD
MICROWAVED GLAZED CARROTS, APPLES AND ZUCCHINI
CARAMEL APPLE CHEESE PIE
FRESH APPLE-NUT CAKE
OLD-FASHIONED APPLE STACK CAKE
by CNB