The fall tartine, an open-faced sandwich of sourdough bread, fresh arugula pesto, slices of roasted beets, topped with pickled apples and finished with goat cheese. PHOTO BY MOLLY PARR

I’ll be frank, there were too many sanctioned field trips to the apple orchards this year. By mid-September my kitchen table was covered in pounds of apples, and I was desperate to use them all up without anyone growing sick of the fruit. Apples went into lunch boxes, only to return untouched, or worse, with one bite taken at lunch and put back in the sack, to brown at the bottom of the bag.

There were perfect snacks of apple with peanut butter (or sunflower butter for the peanut-free second grader). There was the apple and rutabaga soup that I finished with sprinkles of blue cheese, and another apple that I chopped into bits which I sauteed in butter, brown sugar and a touch of cinnamon. I used a few more up in a very easy Dutch apple cake that I make when this sort of thing inevitably happens in the fall.

Then I came up with this tartine, this open-faced sandwich that I am thrilled to say used up another apple from the orchard, plus vegetables from the CSA: Sourdough bread, fresh arugula pesto, slices of roasted beets, topped with pickled apples and finished with goat cheese. Any type of apple will work, except for Red Delicious, which is a garbage apple and should be thrown into your compost.

I cleaned the arugula by filling a large bowl with cold water, adding the arugula, and then let the grit and dirt fall to the bottom of the bowl. I roasted my beets in a large roasting pan that I filled one inch deep with water. Then I covered them with foil and let them steam in a hot, hot oven. I keep my walnuts in the freezer which gives them months more of extra life. I do recommend a plain sourdough for this one; with so much going on on top, I tend to keep that part plain on purpose.

You will have more arugula pesto than just for this tartine. We spread our leftovers on breakfast sandwiches that we topped with a fried egg and melted lacey Swiss. Feel free to toss it with some leftover pasta.

3 cups of dry, fresh arugula, cleaned and stemmed

One third to one half cup extra virgin olive oil

Turn on a food processor fitted with the steel blade, and drop in the garlic clove. When they are chopped and adhering to the sides, stop the machine, scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the walnuts. Turn on the machine, and process until they are finely ground. Scrape down the bowl again, and add the arugula and the salt. Pulse until the arugula is finely chopped, then turn on the machine and run while you slowly drizzle in the olive oil. When the mixture is smooth, stop the machine, scrape down the sides and process for another 30 seconds or so. Taste and season with a squeeze or two of lemon juice. It will help balance the pesto.

One apple of your choice, cored and sliced thinly, about one half inch thick

One half cup white wine vinegar

One half cup maple syrup

One to two star anise

Place the sliced apple into a small lidded jar. In a small saucepan, combine the vinegar, water, maple syrup and star anise. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer for two minutes. Turn off the stove, making sure everything is combined well, then pour the pickling liquid over the apples. Once the liquid has cooled, lid the jar and place in the fridge until use.

Molly Parr lives in Florence with her husband and two young daughters. She’s been writing her food blog, Cheap Beets, since 2010. Send questions or comments to molly.parr@gmail.com.

Two members of the Cannabis Control Commission acknowledged Thursday that the commission is investigating the January death of a 27-year-old...

Voters in the 1st Hampshire District, the 1st Franklin District have an opportunity to weigh in on Election Day whether there should be a fee on...

THE HOUSE AND SENATE: There were no roll calls in the House or Senate last week. Also up on Beacon Hill ALLOW CITIES AND TOWNS TO COLLECT CONDO...

DEERFIELD — Up and down Old Main Street, houses from the Colonial era still stand, now turned into educational opportunities by Historic Deerfield...