OPB’s “Superabundant” explores the stories behind the foods of the Pacific Northwest with videos, articles and this weekly newsletter. To keep you sated between episodes, Heather Arndt Anderson, a Portland-based culinary historian, food writer and ecologist, highlights different aspects of the region’s food ecosystem. This week she offers a recipe for warm apple turnovers with sharp cheddar cheese.

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Okay, yes, we’ve been making a lot of one-pot cozy foods in bowls lately, but we get it. This isn’t the “Souperabundant” newsletter, after all. That food just seems to taste better from a bowl is not really debatable (it totally does, don’t @ us), but the cooler weather and all this — gestures broadly at October superabundance — is definitely pulling us toward the oven. The people demand baked goods — preferably baked goods that come with gooey cheese. Fortunately, gooey cheese happens to pair beautifully with tender, delicately spiced apples and flaky pastry.

It just so happens that last month, Travel & Leisure Magazine named Mt. View Orchards in Parkdale, Oregon, one of America’s top 20 places to go apple picking. Mt. View Orchards grows around four dozen types of apples, including the popular Honeycrisp. Bafflingly, Red Delicious is America’s most popular apple variety (there truly is no accounting for taste), but an informal survey among OPB’s staff revealed there’s a lot of love for one variety born right here in the Northwest (it also happens to find itself on various “America’s most popular apples” lists). Do you know what it is? Read on to find out!

Portlander says “cheese,” farming in a drier climate and good things in gardens and markets

Freshly picked morsels from the Pacific Northwest food universe:

Cheese champ

In the world of cheese, Oregon has done it again — not only does the Beaver State hold the honor of producing the only American cheese to win the World Cheese Awards, but when Cowbell Cheese Shop’s Sam Rollins took second place at the Lu Mondial du Fromage cheesemonger competition last month, Oregon also became home to the only American in the competition’s 10 years to rank so high. OPB’s Crystal Ligori chatted with Rollins on “All Things Considered.”

Dry farming

It might sound odd to study dry-farming techniques in the famously rainy Pacific Northwest, but as our climate becomes hotter and drier, farmers and crop scientists will increasingly look to ways people grew food without irrigation. Crystal Ligori reports on the latest science emerging from Oregon State University and the Dry Farming Institute.

Portland’s celebration of funky foods

It’s time for the Portland Fermentation Festival! Stop by the Ecotrust’s Irving Street Studio on Thursday, Oct. 19 to taste, smell and even hear the bubbling sounds of funky fermented foods made right here in the Northwest. Local makers will have educational displays and free samples, and “Superabundant” newsletter writer Heather Arndt Anderson will be hosting a bacterial petting zoo.

In the ‘Superabundant’ garden this week

The “Superabundant” garden is in a bit of a transition. The warm temps of last week sent the tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers into overdrive, but the rain that followed forced us to harvest the tomatoes and call it a day. We’re letting the cukes and chiles go a little bit longer, since we can always pickle the skinny babies as cornichons and the peppers can weather a rainy chill without issue. The tomatillos and ground cherries continue to ripen and drop for leisurely retrieval (we stash these in the fridge until we have enough to make a couple pints of salsa verde). The winter crops that were biding their time over the summer — red Russian kale and kohlrabi — are ready for all manner of dals and stews and such. We harvested all the basil; we pesto’d the Genovese for the freezer and pureed the Thai basil with a little coconut milk for winter curries.

Good things in markets

Right now, apples, pears and table grapes are the queens of the fruit stands. We’re welcoming the first persimmons (mainly Fuyus at the moment) and bidding a warm adieu to the tomatoes and figs. There are lovely winter squashes, but also look out for the myriad colorful cauliflowers out there, fractal-alien romanesco (they seriously look like snails infected with that disco parasite), and Fioretto, aka sprouting cauliflower; it’s the same thing as the Chinese “Taishan” cauliflower available at Asian markets. Wild fall mushrooms are showing up now, too — if you don’t forage your own, keep an eye out for chanterelles and porcini.

Albacore and both coho and Chinook salmon are about finished for the season, but groundfish like lingcod, petrale sole, sablefish (aka black cod) and rockfish go year-round.

Recipe: Sharp cheddar and apple turnovers

Fancy wild mushrooms may get the “oohs” and “ahhs” this time of year, and pears may hold the official state fruit title, but Oregon’s apples are nothing to sneeze at. One orchardist in Yoncalla, Oregon, happens to have the world’s largest collection of apple varieties, growing on around 4,500 apple trees. What kind of apples to use for this recipe is entirely up to you, though a firmer variety is better — we have tons of McIntoshes from our trees, but a tart Granny Smith or even OPB staff favorite/Washington State University invention Cosmic Crisp will work well too (anything but a Red Delicious which, face it, is accurately described by only one of those adjectives). Makes 8 turnovers.

Ingredients

1 17.3 oz package frozen puff pastry (2 sheets)

2 tbsp unsalted butter

4 medium apples (about 1 ¼ lb), peeled, cored, and diced

2 tbsp brown sugar

2 tbsp granulated sugar

¼ tsp freshly ground nutmeg

1 tsp cinnamon

4 oz finely shredded sharp or extra sharp cheddar cheese, divided

1 egg, beaten

Sparkling/sanding sugar

Instructions

1. Thaw the puff pastry according to the directions on the package. Line a baking sheet with parchment and preheat the oven to 400º.
2. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the apples, stirring frequently, until they begin to soften (about 3-5 minutes depending on the variety of apple you’re using) and then add the sugars, nutmeg and cinnamon. Stir to combine and cook until the sugars are dissolved, another minute or two. Turn off the heat and let the mixture cool slightly. Roughly divide the cooked apple mixture into 8 portions.
3. Quarter each pastry sheet into four squares and set them on the prepared baking tray. Set about ¼ cup of the shredded cheese aside for topping, then place a fat pinch of the remaining cheese and a portion of the apples on each, aiming for one corner but leaving about 1⁄2′' of room along the edge — you’ll want to make sure you can seal the pastry edges without the filling coming out. Fold the other corner of the pastry over to make a triangle, then use a fork to crimp the edges shut.
4. Using the tip of a sharp knife, jab a few holes into the top of each turnover, then brush each with the beaten egg. Sprinkle a few of the reserved cheese shreds on top of each pastry, then sprinkle a little pinch of sugar on top.

Bake until golden brown and puffed, about 20-25 minutes. Transfer the turnovers to a cooling rack and wait a few minutes before diving in — the interior will be as hot as napalm and will destroy your mouth if you’re not careful.

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