I came upon an interesting tidbit about Pentagrams and their association with apples ( a Pentacle is the five pointed star and a Pentagram is the same five pointed star enclosed in a circle) and believe it or not had never heard of the Pagan lore attached to it. As follows is a (not so ) brief summary of it's origins in Pagan history
Think of an apple... juicy and red and ripe for the picking. When it is sliced in half, it magically shows us a five pointed star formed by the seeds inside. Each of these five seeds contain a symbolism reflecting the spiritual aspects of this universal symbol: idea; sustenance; life, secret knowledge and the hidden mysteries within the earth.
Remember the story of Adam and Eve...? In Christian lore, the apple represented hidden knowledge which was forbidden to human kind and the apple signified that which we should not attempt to know ... and attempts over the centuries to obtain knowledge of the Universe ...and therefore, ourselves... were suppressed. The Pentagram in its modern guise as the pentacle was also a target of this subjugation.
The Pentagram was originally a symbol of the goddess, Kore, who was worshipped in many countries as widespread as England and Egypt thousands of years ago, but under many different names (i.e. Cara, Ceres, Carnak, Core, Car, Karnak, etc). Kore's sacred fruit was the apple. When cut through its equator, the apple has a near perfect pentagram shape inside, with each point containing a seed. Many Wiccans, Pagans and Roma (Gypsies) still cut apples in this way and the Roma refer to apple cores as Stars of Knowledge
Think of this next time you eat an apple.
Cranberry Relish
Ingredients
1 pound cranberries
2 apples
2 oranges
1 large pkg of strawberry jello mix
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 lemon, juiced
1 can drained, crushed pineapple
2 ounces brandy or Grand Marnier (optional)
Directions
Chop the cranberries, apples and the oranges into course mixture with their skins, a food processor will work. Add the remaining ingredients and stir well. Allow the flavors to blend overnight or for several hours in the refrigerator. Relish may be frozen.
Apple Cider
* 12 or so small-medium apples (I prefer Gala apples for their taste)
* 1 small orange
* 1/2 to 1 cup brown sugar (white if you prefer or 1/4 cup whole Stevia leaf for a sugar substitute)
* 3-4 cinnamon sticks
* 1 tbsp. nutmeg
* 1 tbsp whole cloves
* water to cover apples
1.) Wash and roughly chop apples and orange-do not worry about removing peels, seeds, or stems. Toss into a large stock pot.
2.) Add sugar (I start with 1/2 cup, you can always add more later or 1/4 cup whole Stevia leaf).
3.) Add spices and cover with water.
4.) Bring to a boil and boil uncovered for at least an hour.
5.) Cover and reduce to a simmer. Allow juice to simmer for at least two hours.
6.) Uncover and use a potato masher to roughly mash content of pot. To further reduce: continue simmering until cider is dark and tastes sweet and spicy.
7.)When cider is ready allow to cool then strain apple pieces and whole spices into a clean pitcher or pot. ( my grandmother's trick was to use a brand new, clean knee high nylon over a large mouth funnel.)
8.) Serve hot. Store in the fridge and reheat as desired. I have found it makes about a 1/2 gallon.
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