Move Over Maple

“If you choose the right apples,” says Neal Smith about his pure cider syrup, “you don’t need sugar.” And he ought to know: Smith grows 40 varieties of antique apples on his five-acre orchard. These include the apple that both George Washington and Thomas Jefferson prized above all others, the Spitzenberg, as well as yellow Newtown Pippins, Roxbury and Golden Russets, Ribstons, Foxwelps and Arkansas Blacks.

Smith, a former Catholic priest, never intended to grow apples. When he bought the farm, it was to house juvenile delinquents. But problems with state funding developed, and out of necessity, Smith began growing apples.

Smith sells his apples, but he also uses them in the products he cooks in the farm kitchen. These, like the apples, are antiques. It took six years for Smith to perfect the pure cider syrup commonly used in Colonial kitchens. To make the syrup clear, Smith even had to design his own evaporating system.

It was worth the work. The syrup is sweet and tart and too good to use only on pancakes. Pour it on oatmeal or over ice cream. Use it as topping for fruit or apple pies. And at $16 (including shipping) for two 12-ounce jugs, this is the perfect present for the person who thought he had everything.

Greenwood Farm

R.F.D. No. 2, Box 70

Northfield, Mass. 01360

(413) 498-5995 MasterCard, Visa