The Apple Connection is the fifth volume of a culinary adventure series that began eight years ago. Who could have predicted that a cranberry caper amidst the rubies of the bog, would lead to concoctions of jewels — from blueberry barrens and maple groves and strawberry fields? With this last Connection, the series comes full circle to the first fruit — the fabled ‘pomme’ of many colours — the ultimate temptation — the modern day crunchy, juicy, sweet or tart, and ever-adaptable apple.

The Romans had 22 varieties of apples, preserving them whole in jars of honey. Today there are over 6,000 varieties and many ways of serving them. The Apple Connection contains old, new and modified apple recipes, from Port Royal Flambees to Pomona Pie, from an Adam’s Apple to an Apple Blossom Shake, from Neighbourly Jam to Paradise Punch.

In between the recipes you will find everything you always wanted to know about apples. The first historical reference to an apple product on the North American Continent, was found in a 1605 diary by Samuel de Champlain at Port Royal, Nova Scotia. He wrote, “The cold was so intense that the cider was divided by an axe and measured out by the pound.” Another French explorer wrote that apple trees were growing in Port Royal in 1610, “perhaps even before.” The apple is one of the earliest connections between Canada and the United States and played an important role in their shared heritage.