Apples Update

From twelve and one half (50 lb) bags of apples to apple cider, hard apple cider, apple wine, apple pie filling and apples to snack on. After, Sean and I pressed the apples at a congregation apple pressing party, it was time to start processing our bounty to savor over the cold winter months.

To prepare my traditional apple cider, I sterilized my equipment: large stock pot, water bath canner, covers, ladle, and jugs, and the cider in 8 quart batches. I added 1 tbsp of ground cinnamon and 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg to each batch. Using a plastic funnel made filling my jars easy, easy. I filled 7 gallons of cider. Sooooo delicious warm or cold. Once they cool on the counter (It is not safe to put warm or hot foods in the fridge or freezer. It can raise the internal temperature and cause foods to thaw in the freezer, or bacteria to grow in a warmer fridge environment) to room temperature, they are ready for the freezer. These can last for up to a year this way.

I am sending my husband's Dad and Mom and his Brother's family the quart jars which I canned in a hot water bath. Packed carefully and shipped overnight via UPS, they should arrive intact and be ready to be enjoyed or stored until colder weather.

My husband's Hard Cider takes somewhat less preparation at this stage. Pressed and poured into (2) five gallon glass carboys and (1) five gallon bucket, he topped them with air locks and wisely leaves them to do their fermentation thing. In about a week, he will rack and bottle them. Once more, leaving them be to age to perfected, drinkable goodness in about one month.

Sonja ♥



Apple Adventures

Fall means many delightful things. Among my favorite of them are leaves changing colors on the trees like an artist painting the world around us, bonfires with friends complete with marshmallows and steaming cups of hot chocolate, and APPLES. Delicious. Delightful. Delovely Apples. 

Two years ago, my husband and I picked 3 contractor bags of apples from a friend's tree and from this made 10 gallons of a sweet apple wine and several gallons of apple cider. This year, we were again blessed through a friend of my sister, Kelli to be allowed to glean apples from a cultivated orchard. On Wednesday, my husband and I picked and filled (8) 50lb grain bags with Cortlands, MacIntosh, Braeburns, Granny Smiths and Red Delicious. I have no idea if these bags hold 50 lbs of apples, but they certainly FELT like it when I tried bringing them to the car. I quickly decided that this was "man's work" and left it to my husband.

My Christian sister, Cheri and I canned 21 Quarts of apples into slices, spiced with cinnamon, sugar, lemon juice, and nutmeg for apple crisps and apple pies to warm our hearts and bellies in the cold months to come. I will put up a few more from these fruits gathered. I will be glad to share this recipe. Feel free to comment or email me to get it.

On Saturday, we are joining some Christian friends to enjoy an old fashioned apple pressing party. With this many apples, we will be able to enjoy them through the whole of winter. My husband, Sean, has every intention of using the (3) carboys he owns to age some into apple wine and hard cider. I will collect (10) gallons into containers, boil this, and pour it into clean plastic jugs to freeze. 

It feels so wonderful to prepare foods for my family to enjoy through the winter months. I love the feeling of accomplishment it gives me.

♥ Sonja

I just got home from helping Sean pick 2 more trees, which equaled 3 1/2 additional grain bags of apples! I am loving apples, but I am slightly concerned that we will be able to process this volume! I'll let you know how it goes! ♥

On the bright side... pickles ♥

One of the unexpected "bright sides" of still having to drive my son and daughter to their jobs is that I am able to swing by the community center to glean some fruits and veggies a couple of times each week. These must be eaten and/or preserved immediately or else the goats and hens find me extra generous with their treats.

Originally, I had planned on buying a couple dozen canning jars to put up some of the veggies from our garden. But, my sister was given about six dozen jars, which she did not need, so she kindly passed them on to me. Free is the best "coupon" of all! My plan is to "put up" salsa, marinara, apple pie filling, and dilly beans. I am also going to freeze some apple cidar to enjoy through the winter months.
I was hoping to find more green beans today. The batch of dilly beans I made last week did not come out so well. Upon closer investigation, I strongly suspect I forgot to add the canning salt to the first batch so currently, my 10 year old is the only one willing to eat them. Having tried them myself, she is more than welcome to them!

I did not find green beans, but I did get enough pickling cucumbers to make 7 quarts of dill pickles. I decided to use my Grandfather's recipe for the beans, slightly modified to accommodate using cukes. My husband and I prepared them together. I tasted one slice from the first jar before sealing them; it was absolutely delicious. If they are as yummy completely processed, I will share my recipe with you all.

I like the feeling of putting up foods in the basement cupboard. I like how they look; all in delicious rows, just waiting to be opened and enjoyed. I like the thought of following time honored traditions of preserving foods to care for my family. I like smell of dill and of apples in the house. ♥

Once again, I froze all of the breads for a later use- except the blueberry bagels my husband will be eating for breakfast tomorrow and possibly Saturday. I am planning on adding the green peppers and tomatos to those I grew in my garden this year as the main ingredients of some homemade spicy salsa. Can't wait!

♥ Sonja