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Apple Fool
1018. Pare the fruit, and either scald or bake it until sufficiently soft to pulp it through a colander; sweeten it agreeably to taste, and fill the glasses three parts full with it. Then plentifully sprinkle in some cinnamon and cloves in powder, put a good layer of rich scalded cream, and sift white sugar upon the top.
A fool in this sense is simply fruit pulp under cream — here layered rather than folded together, so the contrast of tart apple and thick cream is the whole point.
- ApplesUse a variety that collapses: Bramley, McIntosh or any cooking apple that breaks down to a purée. A firm dessert apple will resist the colander and give you a lumpy pulp.
- Scald or bakeScalding means simmering the pared fruit in a covered pan with a splash of water until soft, roughly 15-20 minutes. For baking the recipe gives no setting; whole or halved apples at around 350F for 40-50 minutes, then scooping the flesh out, will do.
- Pulping through a colanderA colander with fine perforations, a food mill or a coarse sieve all do the same job. Skip the blender — it makes the purée slick and pale rather than fluffy.
- Scalded creamCream heated to just below boiling and then cooled thickens slightly and tastes faintly cooked. Double or heavy cream, brought to a bare shiver in a pan and chilled thoroughly, gives the intended body; clotted cream is a reasonable stand-in.
- Spicing'Plentifully' is not quantified here. Start with about half a teaspoon of cinnamon and a quarter teaspoon of cloves per pound of apple pulp and taste.
- SweeteningSweeten the purée while it is warm so the sugar dissolves. Cooking apples usually take 3-4 tablespoons of sugar per pound; the sifted sugar on top adds more, so keep the pulp on the sharp side.
- Assembly and yieldGlasses three parts full of pulp, then the spices, then the cream, then a dusting of sugar. A pound and a half of apples with a cup of cream should fill roughly four to six small glasses. Chill before serving.