Hidden Rose Apples®
Estimated Inventory, 22 ct : 0
This item was last sold on : 04/06/25
Description/Taste
Hidden Rose Apples® are a small to medium-sized varietal, averaging 6 to 7 centimeters in diameter, and have an elongated, conical shape with flat, broad shoulders tapering to a narrow base. The apple’s thin skin showcases faint white lenticels, moderate ribbing, and a glossy, smooth sheen with a waxy consistency. The skin also has a pale-yellow to green hue, sometimes covered in faint patches of red blush. Underneath the surface, the flesh features variegated tones of pale pink, bright red, and white, and each apple will have varying degrees of pigment with mostly white around the core. The flesh also has an aqueous, fine-grained, and dense nature with a crisp and firm texture, encasing a central core filled with black-brown seeds. Hidden Rose Apples® have a sugar-like scent and a balanced, sweet-tart flavor with sharp and fruity nuances reminiscent of strawberry lemonade, citrus, and berries.
Seasons/Availability
Hidden Rose Apples® are available in the late fall through early winter.
Current Facts
Hidden Rose Apples®, botanically classified as Malus domestica, are a variegated, red-fleshed variety belonging to the Rosaceae family. The late-ripening apples were discovered growing as a chance seedling in Oregon in the late 20th century and were selected for their unusual flesh coloring and firm, dense texture. Hidden Rose Apples® are versatile, utilized by apple enthusiasts in fresh and cooked preparations, and the apples are grown in limited supply as a specialty variety. The name Hidden Rose Apple® is a trademarked label singularly used by Dragonberry Produce to market the variety in commercial markets. All Hidden Rose Apples® are certified organic when sold under the Dragonberry Produce name, and the variety is challenging to grow, exclusively licensed to specific partners to maintain and regulate the quality of the apples.
Nutritional Value
Hidden Rose Apples® are a source of fiber to regulate the digestive tract, potassium to balance fluid levels within the body, and vitamins A and C to strengthen the immune system, reduce inflammation, and boost collagen production. The apples also provide anthocyanins, pigments within the flesh that contain antioxidant-like properties to protect the cells against free radical damage, and other amounts of boron, vitamin E, vitamin K, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, iron, and copper.
Applications
Hidden Rose Apples® have a sweet-tart, tangy flavor well suited for fresh and cooked preparations. The apples are popularly sliced to showcase the variegated flesh coloring, and the slices can be tossed into salads, displayed on charcuterie boards, or arranged on a snack plate with various nut butter. Hidden Rose Apples® can also be consumed straight out of hand as a dessert apple, or they can be cut and layered onto toast, used as an edible garnish, or candied as a sweet treat. In addition to fresh preparations, Hidden Rose Apples® hold their shape when cooked and can be incorporated into pies, cakes, muffins, tarts, and turnovers or simmered into sauces, preserves, and jams. They can also be sauteed and served with roasted meats, baked whole, or fried in butter with spices and sugar to create a savory-sweet topping over ice cream, pancakes, and baked goods. Beyond culinary dishes, Hidden Rose Apples® can be blended into smoothies, pressed into juice, or used as a base flavoring in ciders. In the Pacific Northwest, Hidden Rose Apples® are frequently used to make a blushed hard cider and are valued for their complex flavor. The apples can also be sliced and dried into strips and rings. Hidden Rose Apples® pair well with roasted meats such as poultry, pork, lamb, and turkey, spices including cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and ginger, vanilla, caramel, and other fruits such as stone fruit, berries, and citrus. Whole, unwashed Hidden Rose Apples® will keep up to one month when stored in the refrigerator.
Ethnic/Cultural Info
There is an ongoing debate among growers in the Pacific Northwest as to who originally discovered the red-fleshed apple. The variety has historically appeared under several names, including Hidden Rose Apples®, Airlie Red Flesh, Aerlies Red Flesh, Newell-Kimzey, Schwartz apples, and Mountain Rose apples. Newell-Kimzey and Airlie Red Flesh are the oldest names for the variety, and Airlie was given to the apples in honor of being discovered in the Oregon neighborhood with the same name. Hidden Rose Apple® is a trademarked name that was given later to the variety in the early 21st century and was created by Eric Schwartz to capture the consumer market. Since Hidden Rose Apples® is trademarked, other growers producing the same variety could not release their apples under the same name, causing farms such as Kiyokawa Family Orchards to name their pigmented apples Mountain Rose. In the present day, there is still a discrepancy among various apple growers, and each farm has differing opinions as to the correct name for the variety.
Geography/History
Hidden Rose Apples® were discovered growing as a chance seedling in the early 1960s in a meadow on the property of Lucky and Audrey Newell in Airlie, Oregon. The original tree grew approximately six feet from a hand-dug well, and the Newell’s noticed the apples one day when they were horseback riding and stopped at the well. Lucky Newell recalled that he was startled by the apple’s red flesh and sweetly compared the fruit’s coloring to the color of his wife’s lips, but beyond enjoying the variety for personal use, the Newells did not commercially cultivate the variety. The farm was sold in 1966, and later, Louis Kimzey, a former field manager at Thomas Paine Farms, rediscovered the pigmented apples, recognizing that they were a new variety. Kimzey partnered with Eric Schwartz and began grafting the variety for research and propagation, establishing the first commercial orchard in 1992. The apples were given their trademarked name in 2001 and were exclusively marketed by Dragonberry Produce. Today Hidden Rose Apples® are licensed to specific growers, and all apples released under the trademarked name are certified organic. When in season, Hidden Rose Apples® are sold through specialty grocers and distributors in the United States.
Recipe Ideas
Recipes that include Hidden Rose Apples®. One
is easiest, three is harder.
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