Mounds of Royal Galas and Empires, Ashmead Kernels and Hawaiians, and Honeycrisps and Pink Pearls filled the atrium at the JCC of San Francisco.
It was the center’s first “Apple-palooza” to herald the approach of fall and Rosh Hashanah, and more than 100 people were there, happily munching on local apple samples provided by Bi-Rite Market and the Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture, which runs the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market in San Francisco.
Tastings of hard cider and apple brandy also were available. Maybe that’s why so many people showed up.
Many of them also attended a talk by award-winning food writer Rowan Jacobsen, author of previous books about honeybees and oysters, and the just-released “Apples of Uncommon Character: 125 Heirlooms, Modern Classics & Little-Known Wonders.”
Learning that there are more than 7,000 varieties of apples in the United States seemed to be a good way to head into Rosh Hashanah. Moreover, while he was at the JCC, Jacobsen received a call from the Washington Post asking for a comment on the perfect pairing of apples and honey for Rosh Hashanah.
The apple should be very tart, he replied, like a Pippin or a Granny Smith, to blend perfectly with the sweetness of the honey. He suggested California orange blossom honey, which is created by putting beehives in the citrus groves while the trees are blooming.
The JCC’s Lenore Naxon helped organize the event — the kickoff event in the JCCSF’s five-part “Focus on Food” series.
Jacobsen told the assemblage, “Part of the reason I wrote my book is that when I started learning about some of the heirlooms and modern varieties, I was amazed at the incredible diversity I had not known about.”
Jacobsen said Washington apple growers believe this is the year of the Gala — in that it will finally knock out Red Delicious as the primary apple sold in grocery-store chains. He added, “The apple is an entity that has this incredibly wide range, and we haven’t been asking enough of it. It can do a lot of different things.”
“Apples of Uncommon Character” is part culinary history, part guidebook and part cookbook. Delving into the first part, Jacobsen said apples were favored in early Colonial days out of practicality. Not only did they provide fresh fruit throughout the year, since they could be picked when hard and sour, then ripened in cellars, but hard cider was a standard beverage. Its alcohol content (4 percent) made it safer than water to drink. Also, in pre-refrigeration days, apples were often used to make cider vinegar, an important food preservative.
Hard cider, Jacobsen continued, was very popular until the early 20th century, and he noted how specific varieties of apples were grown for their tannins (bitterness), just like some grapes are now grown for wine. Ciders were so refined that some were even compared to champagne, but that tradition was snuffed out by Prohibition.
Now, however, a craft cider movement is up and coming.
“Cider is cool again,” Jacobsen said. “The cider world is on a trajectory, and there are no rules, so everyone’s trying things like barrel-aged, flavored ciders, canned English draft style, cider aperitifs like vermouth, and ice ciders.”
For pie making, Jacobsen recommended that people use a personal choice of five varieties of apples per pie — a mixture of tart and sweet and one that breaks down easily.
But he also warned against thinking that apples are only for sweet desserts.
“Everyone has lots of great sweet recipes, but apples work really well in savory dishes,” he said. “Try a tart variety in an apple salsa,” he advised.
Well, so much for a sweet new year. How about a savory and spicy one?
“Focus on Food” series continues through Nov. 18. JCC of San Francisco, 3200 California St. $15-$40. www.jccsf.org/arts or (415) 292-1233.