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While tumbling down a research rabbit hole this week, I emerged with a few vital new insights, but was left with far more questions than answers. One of these questions hung in the air, and what I learned led to a tectonic shift in my thinking. Did ancient Sumerians invent apple pie à la mode?

I see you think I’m joking. [Imagine me rolling in one of those corkboard conspiracy walls with a big map and red strings, newspaper clippings, and like photos of apples and horses and stuff. I pull out an extendable pointer.]

Based on where we find the highest genetic diversity in wild populations today, apples are believed to have originated in Kazakhstan and were thought to have been domesticated between 4,000 and 10,000 years ago. Travellers using the proto-Silk Road (the Steppe Route) for trade became the world’s first Johnny (er, Jenis) Apple Seeds, distributing the fruit along the way. Archaeological records suggest the fruit was already being cultivated in the Middle East at least 3,000 years ago.

Mentions of sweetened, spiced fruit preserves called murabba don’t first appear until the 10th century, but there is a recipe for stewed apples in ancient Mesopotamian cuneiform tablets. You read that right — the earliest human writing included a food column. 🤯🤯 But that’s neither here nor there!

Current records indicate that ice cream was independently invented in Ancient Persia in around 550 BCE (right after apples were domesticated in the region), though the ancient culinary tablets report that ice was already a luxury ingredient more than a thousand years earlier, and lists a variety of sweeteners and dairy products that were already mainstays by then. No, the dates don’t line up perfectly, but do you really believe it took a thousand years for these obviously innovative Sumerians to figure out frozen desserts? [I’m furiously rapping on the conspiracy wall with the pointer here.]

Finally, there was pie in the ancient world too, both savory and sweet. The culinary cuneiforms mentioned chicken pie, while ancient Egyptian texts mention honey-filled pastry with an oaten topping. That is basically streusel! I stand by my pie-pothesis!

Anyway, I hope you had a productive week of staying on topic and not getting distracted by imaginary ancient desserts (should it be called apple pie à l’ancienne instead??). I do hope you’ll try this recipe — it’s saucy, rich and buttery like a proper caramel should be, and the apples stay tender and crisp, cooked just enough to soften on the edges. Serve it on vanilla ice cream and a liege waffle (it’s also sublime draped over pancakes or a toasted croissant. Or by itself, with a spoon). Makes 1 quart

🍎 Watch Oregon Experience / Superabundant: Kiyokawa Orchards Apples 🍎

Ingredients

3 large apples, preferable a crisp/tart variety (I used Honeycrisp)

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted room-temperature butter, divided

Sea salt

1 cup sugar, divided

½ teaspoon cinnamon

½ cup heavy whipping cream

Instructions

1. Peel, core and cube the apples into bite-sized (~ ½-inch) pieces. Cut the butter into 8 tablespoons.
2. In a medium saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium heat. Add the apples and a few generous pinches of salt and sugar plus the cinnamon to the apples and saute, stirring occasionally, until glossy and softened on the edges, about 6-8 minutes. Transfer the cooked apples to a bowl (or quart jar) and set aside.
3. Add the remaining sugar to the pan and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until it dissolves and begins to turn golden brown, about 5-7 minutes. It will be clumpy and weird but keep stirring — it will eventually melt into a thick, amber syrup.
4. Reduce the heat to low and add the remaining butter, which will sputter dramatically (be careful!) and whisk furiously until it’s smooth. It might be clumpy and separated again, but just pull it off the burner and keep whisking until it comes together.
5. Once it’s smooth and golden, carefully and slowly whisk in the cream (it will sputter even more than the butter) until fully combined and increase the heat to medium. Let the caramel boil for a minute (it should be at around 220 F when it’s done cooking) and then remove from the heat, add a few more pinches of salt and stir in the apples.
6. Serve the compote warm and store any leftovers in the refrigerator (gently reheat before serving).

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News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2026/10/23/superabundant-recipe-caramel-apple-fall-dessert-ancient-history/