Superb summary AntoniaJ....I must admit that I used my frozen apple leavings which I'd been collecting for about a year :-). I doubt their 'freshness' off the tree! This year, when I go with my daughter's class to an orchard, I will know the precise apples to pluck off the tree! I also made mint-chilli jelly with the pectin and got a good set.

Ah Kitchen Butterfly, two excellent reads! Thank you so much for taking the time to answer and share your knowledge. :)

I really like the recipe for apple pectin linked by Kitchen Butterfly . . . . especially the suggestion that you test it using rubbing alcohol (and the photo). I made some apple pectin for the first time earlier this summer, using the recipe from another blog, and although I followed the recipe to the letter, the pectin was useless for its intended purpose. Apparently the apples themselves did not have sufficient pectin in them. I learned -- too late -- that apples not recently picked have less pectin in them. I used commercial apples (rare for me, but I really wanted to try the pectin and local apples would not be available for 6-8 weeks). What turned out to be a frustrating experience could have been avoided, had I tested the pectin level as described in Celia's primer. So, the lessons here are, make your pectin with less than fully ripe apples, recently picked, and test it before putting it up. ;o)

Yes - Apple cake, see my recipe...which isn't yet on food52 http://www.kitchenbutterfly.com/2009/11/24/thanksgiving-cakes-apple-yogurt-cake-and-flavoured-coffees/. But most importantly, Autumn is a great time for making apple pectin - your very own homemade pectin to create jams and spreadable fruit jellies. Good news is you can use just apple leavings (skins, core, pips) or you can use the whole apples. The pectin 'stock' (it is a liquid when you make it) can be canned or frozen. I've just made a batch and used some of that in a successful strawberry & cardamom jam. Check out my friend Celia's primer (from whom I learnt it) http://figjamandlimecordial.com/2009/03/09/homemade-pectin/. And attached is a photo of my pectin!

Mostarda Mantovana, a food52 recipe posted last fall by the talented and generous Maria Teresa Jorge. It's one of my top ten food revelations of the past twelve months.

Baked apples with cranberry juice instead of water at the bottom of the pan. Makes a pretty dish and adds flavor to the apples. Don't forget the brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, cloves and nutmegs.

applesauce, lots of apple cake recipes on this site, dried apples, apple butter, apples and blue cheese in salad, apples and peanut butter, apple pie and apple crisp of course, sauteed apples with pork chops or chicken, apple-carrot-ginger juice (if you have a juicer) or smoothie (in a blender)...