Today J picked the apples from our three backyard trees.  It’s been a good year for the apples, and box after box came inside.  Red, crisp, sweet.  Hundreds of apples.  The big girls posed proudly for a photo in front of the pile.  The baby held an apple in each hand and seriously applied herself to the task of trading off bites.

Our plan to make applesauce all day went out the window, the boxes went to the cool basement, and now every time I go downstairs the sweet smell of fall wraps around me.  One day soon we’ll be making a year’s worth of applesauce, but today we settled for a enjoying just a taste of the season’s bounty in our salad.Savoy Cabbage Salad with Apples and Walnuts (adapted from Chez Panisse Fruit): First make your dressing by whisking together the following ingredients (mix after each addition): 1 Tbsp. lemon juice, 2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar, 1/2 c. olive oil, 2 Tbsp. creme fraiche (or cream), a good pinch of salt and lots of freshly-ground pepper.  Toast a couple handfuls of walnuts.  Quarter and core a small head of savoy cabbage, then slice it into thin ribbons.  (Dunk one of these ribbons in the dressing to taste it and adjust the flavors as needed.)  Choose two crisp, sweet apples, cut them into quarters, and core them.  Cut the quarters into thin slices and then again lengthwise into matchsticks or crosswise as pictured above.  Toss cabbage, apples, and walnuts well with the dressing and another pinch of salt.  Give the salad a five-minute rest and then toss again before serving.