Apple soup

[Zed]

1/2 c. dried prunes (about 12 med.)
1/2 c. raisins
4 c. water
1 c. sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
3 apples, peeled & sliced
2-3 tsp. cornstarch mixed in 1/4 c. cold water

Bring 4 cups water to boil, add prunes, raisins, sugar and cinnamon. Simmer until fruit is soft, about 45 minutes. Add sliced apples and cook until soft. Remove fruit and add water to make 4 cups.

Saw this on another forum, apparently a big favourite of the Swedish army. Of course, they use a powdered mix in the field

[Spartacus]

I eat something very similar every single day. I never add sugar or cornstarch; I use very little water so it's plenty thick enough to start with, and I mix it into porridge with honey/molasses/malt extract/maple syrup, so there is no need for any sweetener. I do add raisins though, and any other fruit that is highly discounted or about to go off. A little orange juice added to stewed fruit makes it very good as a dessert.

Each autumn I sort all available Bramley apples according to size, wrap them individually in newspaper and put them into boxes. The largest apples are the best fruit, and normally far better eaters raw than any 'eating apple' you can get in the shops. However, the biggest apples also perish most quickly, so must be eaten first - obviously, any bruised fruit needs to be eaten quickly too. Small Bramleys aren't as tasty, but many will last into March/April simply wrapped and boxed.

By June/July small apples begin to fall again, which are sour, but taste good stewed and mixed into porridge. This means that one reasonable sized apple tree can essentially feed any normal family that can be bothered to make an effort for at least 9 months of the year. Chutnied, jammed, or stewed and frozen, clearly they'll go even further. A well made chutney lasts for decades.

Drive round England in late summer and autumn and it soon becomes clear that almost nobody can be arsed though. Rotten apples, pears, plums, damsons and greengages cover the earth, where they haven't been replaced with ornamental plants, or tarmacked over completely. I'd feel confident suggesting that at least a month's supply of food for the entire nation goes to waste each year through total negligence. Historic breeds are lost and ancient orchards laid to waste because they are not economically viable.

The waste of native fruit in England is something that pisses me off so badly that I could just shit. I'd like to see people starving to death, just so I could drag them to a pile of decaying pears and force their stupid faces into the still-sweet flesh.

"They were a little bit powdery," they might cry, "I prefer the crunchiness of the shop bought kind."

And I'd say, "Fuck you, you fucking cunt. Cook with the fucking things. Why were you importing aubergines from Somalia when you had two stone of good fruit lying on the grass beside your fucking shed?" And then, "You fucking twat."

[Fissile]

Where I come from, fruit "soup" is called fruit "compote".

[Fissile]

I eat something very similar every single day. I never add sugar or cornstarch; I use very little water so it's plenty thick enough to start with, and I mix it into porridge with honey/molasses/malt extract/maple syrup, so there is no need for any sweetener. I do add raisins though, and any other fruit that is highly discounted or about to go off. A little orange juice added to stewed fruit makes it very good as a dessert.

Each autumn I sort all available Bramley apples according to size, wrap them individually in newspaper and put them into boxes. The largest apples are the best fruit, and normally far better eaters raw than any 'eating apple' you can get in the shops. However, the biggest apples also perish most quickly, so must be eaten first - obviously, any bruised fruit needs to be eaten quickly too. Small Bramleys aren't as tasty, but many will last into March/April simply wrapped and boxed.

By June/July small apples begin to fall again, which are sour, but taste good stewed and mixed into porridge. This means that one reasonable sized apple tree can essentially feed any normal family that can be bothered to make an effort for at least 9 months of the year. Chutnied, jammed, or stewed and frozen, clearly they'll go even further. A well made chutney lasts for decades.

Drive round England in late summer and autumn and it soon becomes clear that almost nobody can be arsed though. Rotten apples, pears, plums, damsons and greengages cover the earth, where they haven't been replaced with ornamental plants, or tarmacked over completely. I'd feel confident suggesting that at least a month's supply of food for the entire nation goes to waste each year through total negligence. Historic breeds are lost and ancient orchards laid to waste because they are not economically viable.

The waste of native fruit in England is something that pisses me off so badly that I could just shit. I'd like to see people starving to death, just so I could drag them to a pile of decaying pears and force their stupid faces into the still-sweet flesh.

"They were a little bit powdery," they might cry, "I prefer the crunchiness of the shop bought kind."

And I'd say, "Fuck you, you fucking cunt. Cook with the fucking things. Why were you importing aubergines from Somalia when you had two stone of good fruit lying on the grass beside your fucking shed?" And then, "You fucking twat."

Why that's some real fine ranting there, pilgrim.

BTW, where does the UK get it's maple syrup? Around these here parts, New York City Area, ours comes from Kanuckstan. Even though we're only a couple of hundred miles from the the border, the shit is fucking expensive.

[Spartacus]

Where I come from, fruit "soup" is called fruit "compote".

'Fruit compote' is closer to what's eaten in England than 'fruit soup' - here it's termed 'stewed fruit.'

BTW, where does the UK get it's maple syrup? Around these here parts, New York City Area, ours comes from Kanuckstan. Even though we're only a couple of hundred miles from the the border, the shit is fucking expensive.

My knowledge of maple syrup is limited, but generally any unadulterated maple syrup seems to be bottled as 'Canadian Maple Syrup,' so I guess that's where it originates. Canadian Maple Syrup is a little more expensive, but anything that doesn't say Canadian on it is - in my experience - either blended with carob or just flavoured refiners syrup. They still call it 'Maple Syrup,' which of course it isn't really, but I suppose some petty legality must prevent them from the more blatant fraud of pretending that it came from Canada when the bulk of it was probably grown in Greece or Norfolk or Arabia.

[Fissile]

My knowledge of maple syrup is limited, but generally any unadulterated maple syrup seems to be bottled as 'Canadian Maple Syrup,' so I guess that's where it originates. Canadian Maple Syrup is a little more expensive, but anything that doesn't say Canadian on it is - in my experience - either blended with carob or just flavoured refiners syrup. They still call it 'Maple Syrup,' which of course it isn't really, but I suppose some petty legality must prevent them from the more blatant fraud of pretending that it came from Canada when the bulk of it was probably grown in Greece or Norfolk or Arabia.

If it's labeled "maple syrup", the law in the US says it must be 100% maple syrup. Most of it comes from Canada, but some comes from the New England states....either way, the real stuff is very expensive. If it's a blend, it's label "maple flavored" syrup. If it's entirely made of colored corn syrup, it's labeled "pancake syrup. A pint of pancake syrup can be had for $2-$3. A pint of top grade maple syrup" can cost $10 or more.

[Zed]

Where I come from, fruit "soup" is called fruit "compote".

Oooh, hoity toity :snooty:

[Spartacus]

If it's labeled "maple syrup", the law in the US says it must be 100% maple syrup. Most of it comes from Canada, but some comes from the New England states....either way, the real stuff is very expensive. If it's a blend, it's label "maple flavored" syrup. If it's entirely made of colored corn syrup, it's labeled "pancake syrup. A pint of pancake syrup can be had for $2-$3. A pint of top grade maple syrup" can cost $10 or more.

$10 a pint sounds relatively reasonable. I'm sure I could easily spend more than £10 a pint in my nearest supermarket. In fact, unless I visited a four-letter German discount chain, I suspect I'd be hard pushed to pay less than that.

[Fissile]

$10 a pint sounds relatively reasonable. I'm sure I could easily spend more than £10 a pint in my nearest supermarket. In fact, unless I visited a four-letter German discount chain, I suspect I'd be hard pushed to pay less than that.

Seeing as how I'm less than 400 miles from where the stuff is produced, and you're 5000 miles from the source, I'd say that $10/pint is damn robbery. Louse thieving Canadians! Always tryin' to get over on Mericans.