Quiz answers

1. Along with Bramley's Seedling and Grenadier, these are a selection of cooking apples.

2. They are all hybrids of the McIntosh variety which, although sweet, has a slight tartness and is notably aromatic.

3. (a) The skin turns a bright red when fully ripe, but the sweet, firm flesh remains noticeably white.

4. Wild and cultivated, crab apples are rarely eaten raw, more often being used to pollinate other apple trees. Their main use is decorative and for jelly.

5. Originally known in the north of England as Nutcracker Night and marked by trick-or-treat games, this is Hallowe'en.

6. Apples, normally prepared as a purée, or cut into segments and sautéd in butter, may be served with grilled mackerel or herring.

7. (b) It was introduced to Rome from the Peloponnese and named after Claudius Appuis, though the apple tree has grown wild in parts of Europe since prehistoric times.

8. He wrote that the ale was warming by the fireside while apples, hanging on strings, roasted above. The cooked flesh fell as pulp on to the surface of the ale.

9. Cooked, strained and chilled, and often served topped with a daub of redcurrant jelly, this is one of Poland's favourite fruit soups.

10. Particularly in savoury recipes, to avoid confusion, apples are often referred to as pommes en l'air (apples of the air).

11. Normally made using pork fat, oatmeal, onions, pig's blood and flavourings, this is black pudding. They were also popular with grilled chitterlings.

12. Probably. Apple core is rhyming slang for "score", meaning £20, a popular expression during the 1950s.

13. Apples, along with pears, bananas, pineapples, figs, paw-paws and the like, are known as fleshy fruits.

14. No. The best grade is extra class, this being produce of excellent quality. This grading system also applies to cherries, grapes, oranges and numerous other fruits.

15. The best calvados comes from Pays d'Auge, and is often drunk after meals and between courses. The name "calvados" is said to derive from a ship wrecked on the region's coast during the Armada battles.