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Transparent Apple Perishky

Every year I keep my eye open at Neufeld Farms for the green tart Transparent Apples that make such delicious pies and apple sauce.  It is the earliest apple of the summer and they are usually favoured for baking.  This is my mom in law's recipe.  The dough is so easy to work with and it turns out tender and flaky every time.  This recipe also freezes really well.  Once the perishky have cooled, simply wrap them in heavy foil and then in a bag and freeze them.  To serve later, open the foil  and slip the perishky on the foil in the oven until heated through.
  • 5  1/2 cup flour
  • 1 cup lard
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 eggs beaten with enough evaporated milk to make 1 1/2 cups total liquid
  • 2 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup minute tapioca
  • 4 pounds fresh transparent apples
  1. Cut the lard and butter into the flour with a pastry blender.
  2. Add the salt and the baking powder with a fork.
  3. Add the liquid into the flour and stir with a fork until mostly combined.
  4. Turn onto a floured counter and bring together with several kneads into a large disc.
  5. Wrap with plastic wrap and chill for several hours.
  6. Divide the dough in half and roll out the first piece of pastry on a well floured surface into a large rectangle measuring about 2 feet long and a foot and a half wide.  It should be quite thin. Make sure you keep the dough from sticking underneath by adding a bit more flour and to the top as well.  ( a pastry mat is a wonderful tool for rolling our pastry)  Try to use flour sparingly as it helps later when you fold the pastry over to make a better seal if it is not dusted with flour.
  7. Cut the large pastry into four rectangles and then work on one at a time...rolling a bit thinner if you notice it is a bit thick on one side.
  8. I typically peel and slice one apple at a time which is enough for one long strip.  They brown so quickly that I try to work quickly.  Once baked they look wonderful so don't worry too much about the browning.
  9. Sprinkle a bit (maybe a half teaspoon  to teaspoon per row) of tapioca down the center and then the diced apples and then sprinkle sugar on top of the row.  I usually use about 1/4 cup sugar per row and a teaspoon of tapicoa.  
  10. Bring the long sides together. .overlapping as best you can.   Bring the ends up and overlap on top.  Pat the dough lightly.  It will stay together fine unless you have flour dusted on the edges.  Even if they come apart slightly they will be delicous.
  11. Bake in a 375 F oven until golden brown and the juices clear.

16 comments:

  1. That looks delicious Lovella! I have never made perishky - this is a great tutorial. We have a very old transparent(we call then "harvest apples")tree in our back yard that yields every other year. This special tree is remembered by the children and grandchildren of the family who lived here before us! These apples make the best apple sauce too.

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  2. What are "transparent apples"? I'm not familiar with them here in Kansas. Granny Smith are the only green apples I know of.

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  3. Haven't had transparent apples since our childhood summers in B.C., yet I can smell them right now, just thinking about them. Yum. Your perishky would be such a welcome treat as I enjoy my coffee. Do you ship?? ;)

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    1. I am just south of the border from you. Our transparent apples are ready now. It has been an usually warm summer here and they are falling off the trees so fast.

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  4. Yum! Brings back memories and makes me want to start baking right now : ) Instead of just overlapping the dough on top, my mom always pinched it together into a little ridge. During baking the ridge flattens out a bit and the dough stays together.

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  5. I've never seen Transparent apples here. I'll have to use another type, sweet and juicy I expect. If I made this I'd use Phyllo dough, and I just might do that!

    Sharon

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  6. Transparent apples are the first apples to ripen in early summer, they have light green skin and are very white inside. They do not keep well as they soften quickly but are fabulous for baking. As a result pie bakers love to make a stack of pies and store them, unbaked in the freezer to bake and serve later.

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  7. Transparents are my favorite apple, but am lucky if I can find them every 5 years or so.

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  8. I notice you use lard frequently. I have gone to just butter, but wondered about the lard. I know it's not as bad as we've been told, but since I've never used it, I don't know how to buy it or what brand. Can you give me some help with this? I live in Central California.

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    1. Hi, I live just north of the border, and use lard often in my baking. I couldn't say what brands might be available where you are, but I use Tenderflake. Look for "pure lard" and check the ingredients list to make sure it doesn't comtain hydrogenated oils. It is usually located on the shelf alongside the shortening (ie Crisco).

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  9. The HUGE benefit of transparent apples is that don't need to be peeled! They are also marketed as Lodi apples. No need to peel, whether for baking or applesauce.

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  10. Pat, I have found lard in large supermarkets in the deep freezer section.

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  11. I have a tree in my front yard. They are dropping so fast this year. We have had a warm summer and they aren't usually ready until mid August. I remember these from my childhood in the summer and King apples in the fall. I live in the NW north of Seattle.

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    1. I live in Western Washington too. Not sure what to do with Transparent Apples. Will try applesauce.

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  12. my mom always used transparent apples for pies and yes they are very hard to find i found some at howard wongs farm in abbotsford bc

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  13. my mom always used transparent apples for pies and yes they are very hard to find i found some at howard wongs farm in abbotsford bc

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