As most of you already know, I grew up in a small town in North Carolina called Statesville. It was a bit idyllic and way off the beaten path. Our modest home stood at the perimeter of the woods, down what was then a dirt road surrounded by large, oak trees with our more than an acre yard. Every autumn my sisters and I could count on a few things happening: 1) having to haul wood from trees my dad cut down in the forest for fire wood for the winter, 2) having to shuck large bushels of corn that my dad would either harvest from our garden or buy so my mom could can them, 3) weekends raking an endless amount of leaves that fell from all of those trees, and 4) going apple picking way up in the Harmony/Union Grove area.
We didn’t have a lot of extra money, so these outings counted as entertainment for us kids. We would pick strawberries in the spring, blackberries in the summer, and apples in the fall. The apples were my favorite because fall has forever been my number one, most loved season. After an extremely hot, muggy summer, the crisp, cool autumn air was a huge welcomed relief. The days were shorter and the afternoon sun always left us in the dark while we paid for what we picked. There were the usual red gala apples, the green granny smith and a few other varieties that I don’t recall; but my favorites back then were the golden delicious. The flesh was always so firm, juicy, and oh so sweet like candy. I’d be hard pressed to find apples that tasted as good as those apples these days. I loved going apple picking.
Fast-forward to what seems like a lifetime ago from those childhood memories, to when I first started sharing my baklava treats with my friends here in Utah. At first, I only had one flavor—my Traditional Honey Walnut. People would always ask me if there were apples in it. “No,” I would say, “but why do you ask?” always very curious why so many different folks thought they tasted apples. “Because it tastes like apple pie,” they would say.
It took me a few years (I can be a slow learner J), but finally I started to experiment with my original recipe by adding apples. It was a great idea! I can’t think of a better way to start the fall/holiday season, than with a box of Sheer Ambrosia Bakery Apple Pie Walnut baklava. You have all the decadent pleasure that comes with baklava: the flaky, buttery layers of fillo, the crunchy spice-infused nuts, and the sweetness of real honey. But you also have the true taste of fall apples!
And if it’s not too sweet for you, drizzle a bit of caramel on top…OOH LA LA! Thank you for your business and enjoy your baklava this month!
—Peace, Love, & Baklava Forever,
Rita
