One of the most popular apple varieties are Honeycrisp apples. These juicy fruits were first developed in Minnesota in 1960 and introduced into the market in the 1990s. The apple was developed at the Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station’s Horticultural Research Center at the University of Minnesota.
What Does a Honeycrisp Taste Like?
The Honeycrisp apple is known for its honey-sweet flavor. This apple is juicier than most apples because the cells of this apple are much larger than other varieties. Each bite is a refreshing mouthful of apple goodness that keeps you wanting more! You do get notes of a pear flavor with this fruit.
What are Honeycrisp Apples Good For?
The Honeycrisp apple is an extraordinary fresh-eating variety. Because of its crunch factor, this apple makes a great snack. Aside from fresh-eating though, this apple makes fantastic apple pies and applesauce. Because of this apple’s crisp texture, they are guaranteed to hold firm when baking.
How to Store Honeycrisp Apples
This variety is usually ready in early September. However, if you refrigerate your batch, your apples can last until April while still maintaining that power pack crunch. Cover your apples with a damp paper towel and place them in the crisper drawer of your refrigerator. Make sure that you are storing mature apples. Make sure that you don’t store your apples and vegetables in the same drawer. Apples give off ethylene gas, which can speed the decay of neighboring produce.
Why Are Honeycrisp Apples so Expensive?
The Honeycrisp is unique in that it was bred solely for taste, not for easy growing, storing, or shipping. This variety takes a lot of TLC to get right, so the farmers are spending more time on this variety when compared to other apple varieties. Another reason is that growers have to pay a higher royalty back to the University of Minnesota.
Fun Fact About Honeycrisp Apples
The Honeycrisp tree a biennial bearing tree. This means that these trees may only bear fruit every other year. Unlike varieties like Gala, if the Honeycrisp tree is left with too many apples by the end of the season, it could harm the tree for the following season. So pick a peck and let’s make sure we have Honeycrisp every year!
Learn more about the Orchard at Fair Oaks Farms.