A IS FOR APPLE, by Greg Patent and Dorothy Hinshaw Patent, Broadway Books, New York, 1999, 276 pages, $15.

Before humanity began to number the years, there were apples.

The fruit hung on the branch entwined by the serpent, was eaten 8,000 years ago at encampments in the Alps and grew in the land of the pharaohs.

In ancient Rome, there were three dozen distinct apple varieties by A.D. 50. Living tissue from at least one of them, the Api, is believed to survive as the Lady apple, having been propagated by grafting since the time of Jesus.

In Maine, wild apples abound. October branches laden with fruit give wildlings the energy to break winter’s ghastly grip. Bowed but unbroken, the trees stand sentinel along stone walls and in old fields, bolstering human courage as the countryside turns toward frost and storm.

The magic of the apple extends to the kitchen, where it has been captured by Greg and Dorothy Hinshaw Patent in a marvelous cookbook, “A is for Apple.” More than a compilation of recipes, the book offers a wealth of information about America’s signature fruit. From the practical to the preposterous, the authors offer a slice of the apple’s life along with generous helpings of pie.

Have you ever wondered how the Big Apple got its name? Was gravity really discovered when Sir Isaac Newton got bopped by a falling fruit? Is apple pie really American?

Look no farther, if not for definitive answers, then at least for some creative guesses.

“A is for Apple” also offers advice on growing your own apples and specific information about the history and cooking qualities of individual varieties such as Winesap and Northern Spy.

The result is a cookbook that’s as interesting to the average reader as it is to a grizzled veteran of the pie wars at Maine fairs. There is even what is believed to be the world’s oldest recipe for apple pie, from “The Forme of Cury,” which was compiled around 1390 by chefs to King Richard II:

Leshes Fryed in Lenton (Fruit Slices Fried for Lent)

“Drawe a thicke almande mylke with water. Take dates and pyke hem clene, with apples and peers and mynce hem with prunes damsyns. Take out the stones out of the prunes, and kerve the prunes a two,” reads the recipe. “Do thereto raisins, sugar, floer of canel, hool macys and clowes, gode powdors and salt. Color hem up with sandres. Meng thise with oile. Make a coffyn as thou didst before, and do this fars thereinne, and bake it wel and serve it forth.”

There are many other gems sprinkled among more than 200 recipes calling for apples in everything from pandowdy to soup. The tarte Tatin is exquisite, a buttery, caramelized glory made from a recipe that is, unfortunately, too complicated to repeat here.

But the following trio of recipes suggest the flavor of “A is for Apple”:

Apple Corn Bread with Bacon and Jalapeno

6 slices bacon Vegetable oil, if needed 1 cup cornmeal 1 cup unbleached, all-purpose flour 3 tablespoons sugar 1 tablespoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt 2 large eggs

3/4 cup milk 1 jalapeno chili, seeded and minced 1 shallot, finely chopped 1 crisp apple, quartered, cored, peeled and shredded (1 cup) 6 cherry tomatoes, halved through the stem end

Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until browned and crisp. Reserve the grease — there should be 1/4 cup. Add vegetable oil if necessary to make up the difference. Drain the bacon on paper towels until cool, then chop and set it aside.

Adjust an oven rack to the center position and preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. About 20 minutes before baking, heavily grease a 10-inch cast iron skillet or 9-inch baking pan with vegetable shortening and set the pan in the hot oven.

In a large bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs just to combine the yolks with the whites. Stir in the milk, bacon fat, jalapeno and shallot. Pour the egg mixture over the dry ingredients, add the chopped bacon and apple, and stir with a rubber spatula only to moisten. Carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven with a potholder and set the pan on a heat resistant surface. Immediately pour in the corn bread batter. (It will sizzle.) Arrange the cherry tomatoes cut side up on top of the batter.

Bake for 20-22 minutes, until the top is browned and a toothpick comes out clean. Let the corn bread stand for five minutes, then cut it into wedges and serve hot.

Sauteed Apples

4 large, firm, tart apples, quartered, cored and peeled 4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 teaspoon sugar Salt and freshly milled black pepper, optional

Cut each apple quarter into two wedges. Melt the butter in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle in the sugar. When the butter foam subsides, add the apple slices. Cook, turning the apples occasionally, until they are tender and golden brown with a few darker spots, about five minutes. Season lightly with salt and pepper if desired, and serve hot.

Apple-Cranberry Cobbler

Filling:

1/2 cup sugar

3/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

3/4 cup fresh orange juice (grate the zest of 1 orange before juicing to use in topping) 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries (or try an equal amount of Maine blueberries) 2 tablespoons dark rum 1 1/2 pounds McIntosh apples, quartered, cored, peeled and cut into

1/2-inch cubes (about 6 cups)

Topping:

1 cup unbleached, all-purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar 1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt 4 tablespoons chilled, unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon-sized pieces Grated zest of 1 orange

2/3 cup buttermilk

Adjust an oven rack to the center position and preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

To make the filling, combine the sugar, pumpkin pie spice, orange juice and cranberries in a heavy medium saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring gently but constantly with a wooden spatula, until the mixture comes to a boil. Cover the pan, reduce the heat to low and simmer for about five minutes, until the cranberries are tender and the sauce is slightly thickened. As the sauce cooks, mash the cranberries with the flat side of the spatula. Cool uncovered, then stir in the rum and apples.

To make the topping, sift the flour with the sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a medium bowl. Add the butter and cut it in with a pastry blender until the particles resemble coarse meal. Add the grated orange zest and buttermilk and stir with a fork just until the batter is thoroughly moistened.

Transfer the apple mixture to a shallow, 2-quart baking dish (such as a glass 10×2 round dish, or a 9-inch square dish will do just fine). Place the cobbler batter on top in eight even mounds, seven around the sides and one in the middle, leaving some space between them.

Bake for about 35 minutes, until the filling is bubbly and the top is well browned. (During baking, the batter will run together, giving the top a “cobbled” look.) Cool on a rack and serve warm or at room temperature.

This is the height of apple season in Maine. Tree-ripened fruit is available at orchards throughout the state. The Patents encourage cooks to seek out locally grown apples, and they offer lots of information on the less-well-known varieties you often find in smaller orchards.

For an even more exotic taste, try using fruit from wild trees. (Imperfections and insect damage can easily be cut out of wild fruit, but to avoid getting sick, you should only use fruit that is still hanging on the tree.) Tartness, texture and cooking quality will vary widely, so expect some spectacular failures — along with some notable successes — if you use wild apples.