What’s in Season: Honeycrisp apples at Stuart’s Farm

Betsy and Bob Stuart at their farm's shop. (Amy Sowder photo)

Honeycrisps ready for sale above and for harvest below. (Amy Sowder Photos)

By AMY SOWDER 

For an arguably ideal way to enjoy a locally grown Honeycrisp apple, try standing in the sunshine under a cloudless blue sky in between rows of apple trees. Choose your favorite nestled among the captivating clusters and twist off that plump orb where droplets sparkle from a recent rain.

Slowly twirling the apple, admire the speckled yellow and red colors as the orchard’s trees wave at you in the gentle breeze. Then take a bite. Feel that signature snap, the burst of juice and the mostly sweet, slightly tangy flavor.

Ripening in time for savoring in September, the Premier Honeycrisp apple is one of the earlier varieties at Stuart’s Fruit Farm. The farm in Granite Springs borders Yorktown Heights to the south and Somers to the east. Established in 1828 as a cattle farm before evolving into a fruit farm, this agricultural institution could be Westchester’s oldest working farm. And it’s here for the long haul, protected by Westchester Land Trust.

In the spring, visitors find flowers and vegetable plants. Autumn is for apple picking, a little peach picking and visiting the pumpkin patch. In the winter, it’s Christmas trees.

The farm grows almost 30 varieties of apples, but not all at the same time, said Bob Stuart, farmer and the fifth generation of his family to run the farm. Bob and his wife, Betsy, have five children and 15 grandchildren, many who also work at the farm.

“That’s the seventh generation right there,” Bob said, pointing to his grandson, Liam, navigating a blue all-terrain vehicle, or ATV, near the farm shop.

While opinions vary on the best way to prepare or eat a Honeycrisp, Bob says the best way is the simplest, “Just eat it whole and fresh.” Applesauce is also good. Some can vouch for baking them as well.

Each week, more varieties will be available at Stuart’s, like elsewhere in northern Westchester farms.

Overall, New York grows more than 250 apple varieties, with more than 36 available on a large commercial scale, according to the New York Apple Association. Depending on the weather through the season, the state’s 2025 production could be more than 32 million bushels. Nationwide production estimates for 2025-26 season — including the top apple-producing state of Washington — are at 279 million bushels, according to the U.S. Apple Association. A bushel of apples weighs 42 to 48 pounds.

In New York, many are sold through retail chains and direct-to-consumer markets like farm stands, U-pick orchards and farmers markets. Unlike Washington, there are more than 500 growers in New York, many of them multigenerational like the Stuart family.

While visitors browsed the farm shop’s baskets of apples and others ventured on foot to the orchards to pick their own, Betsy chatted with customers, some new and some longtime friends. She answered questions and asked them in equal measure.

“There was a proposal today,” she shared to a couple customers, nodding her head toward an extended family emerging from the orchard, heading to their pickup trucks.

Meanwhile, Bob wove through the farm shop’s shelves laden with apples, peaches, honey, jams, flavored honey sticks and apple butters. 

It’s too early to tell how the apple season is going, as it’s unpredictable like the weather, Bob said. 

“We need sunny weekends, and we need good rain,” he said.

But a delightful investigation on the farm’s Honeycrisp crop so far proved that sometimes, the name of an apple says it all: honey-sweet with a touch of tart and amazingly crisp. 

The variety has continued to grow in popularity since seed breeders David Bedford and Jim Luby at University of Minnesota introduced it to the public in 1991. Starting in 1983, Bedford was trying to improve the texture and flavor, not just hardiness, of the apple. The industrialization of the food system in the 1960s and 1970s meant that supermarkets and distributors wanted hardy, aesthetically pleasing fruit that could withstand transportation and storage. For pretty apples like the Red Delicious, that meant a thick skin.

Now, a blemish-free exterior isn’t enough for consumers. We’ve come (almost) full circle, celebrating the unparalleled freshness and pop of flavor that comes from local produce.

To the consternation of large Washington growers, the Honeycrisp has thin skin, which can cause issues on a nationwide commercial scale. 

But more Honeycrisp trees are being planted every year in New York to increase the annual harvest. Nationally, Gala has the highest production, then Red Delicious and then Honeycrisp. It’s one of the “varieties on the rise,” according to the association.

Pluck one from a Hudson Valley grower like Stuart’s Fruit Farm, and you’ll likely also discover that satisfying snap and that rush of sweet juice — a rewarding rite of passage into autumn’s bounty.