Granny Smith apple

Granny Smith apples are a green apple of Australian origin. They are one of the most sour apple varieties as they have a high fruit acid content and they are therefore less suitable than sweeter varieties for making apple juice. However, Granny Smith apples are a popular ingredient for baking and cooking, and it is refreshing to eat them raw. In addition to flavor, the good shelf life of Granny Smith apples has also helped to contribute to their popularity in the export market.

General information:
From Wikipedia: “The 'Granny Smith' is a tip-bearing apple cultivar, which originated in Australia in 1868. It is named after Maria Ann Smith, who propagated the cultivar from a chance seedling. The tree is thought to be a hybrid of Malus sylvestris, the European Wild Apple, with the domestic apple M. domestica as the polleniser. The fruit has hard, light green skin and a crisp, juicy flesh.

They go from being completely green to turning yellow when overripe. The acidity mellows significantly on ripening, and it takes on a balanced flavour.

Though also consumed raw, it is one of the most popular cooking apples.”

Culinary uses:
Granny Smith apples are a popular ingredients for a wide range of desserts, including apple pie and apple cobbler. They are also used to make apple turnovers, apple sauce, compote, and other sweet dishes. In addition, crisp, fresh Granny Smith apples are good as a raw snack or cubed on muesli or salads.

Health benefits:
“Granny Smith is one of several apple cultivars that are high in antioxidant activity, and they boast the highest concentration of phenols amongst the apple breeds. Some sources recommend Granny Smiths (among other apples) as a particularly efficient source of antioxidants, particularly the flavonoids cyanidin and epicatechin, especially if eaten with the skin intact. Granny Smiths are also naturally low in calories and high in dietary fiber and potassium, making them commonly recommended as a component of healthy and weight-loss diets.”

Properties:
“Granny Smith apples are light green in colour ... it is much more easily preserved in storage than other apples, a factor which has greatly contributed to its success in export markets. Its long storage life has been attributed to its fairly low levels of ethylene production, and in the right conditions Granny Smiths can be stored without loss of quality for as long as a year. This cultivar needs fewer winter chill hours and a longer season to mature the fruit, so it is favoured for the milder areas of the apple growing regions. However, they are susceptible to superficial scald and bitter pit. Superficial scald may be controlled by treatment with diphenylamine before storage. It can also be controlled with low-oxygen storage. Pit can be controlled with calcium sprays during the growing season and with postharvest calcium dips.”

Apple allergies:
Translated from “de.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Nahrungsmittelallergie”: “Given the cross-reactivity of antibodies with a related protein in apples, people who are allergic to birch pollen may experience similar allergic reactions when they eat apples — typically in the oral mucous membranes. In contrast to other varieties, most people are likely to be more sensitve to Braeburn, Gala, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, and Jonagold apples.”

Cultural references:
​“In 1968 the pop/rock band The Beatles used an image of a Granny Smith apple as the logo for their corporation, Apple Corps Limited. For their record label, Apple Records, one side of vinyl albums featured the exterior of the fruit whilst the other side of the recording featured a cross-section of the apple.

In the 1980s, Anchorage, Alaska started to be referred to as the "Green Apple of the Arctic", thanks to the beautification campaign that had taken place.

In 2013 the United States Postal Service issued a set of four 33¢ stamps commemorating apples, including the 'Granny Smith' as well as 'Baldwin', 'Golden Delicious', and 'Northern Spy'.”

Interesting facts:
​“Apples are genetic hybrids that produce new genetic combinations in their seedlings. To preserve the exact genetic variation, grafting is the usual method of propagation (and cutting is sometimes used). All the Granny Smith apple trees grown today are clones from the original Smith tree in Sydney.”

“According to the US Apple Association website, it is one of the fifteen most popular apple cultivars in the United States.”

Nutrient tables

The complete nutritional information, coverage of the daily requirement and comparison values with other ingredients can be found in the following nutrient tables.

Author: Kerstin Gackle | 7 Jan 2018