The weather is starting to get quite cold and with the cold air comes the frost. If you have any good apples still hanging in there, you may want to try a good preserve recipe so you can stick them away for the cold winter months. My Granny had a beautiful garden and orchard on the farm and always had loads of apple and crab apple preserves. They were always such a treat for us. I decided this year to try canning for the first time because I finally had enough apples on my tiny tree to attempt it. The recipe is shared below, we cracked open a jar for Thanksgiving dinner and they were delish.
Crab Apple Preserves:
Ingredients:
6 cups water
1 cup maple syrup
2 Tbsp lemon juice
4 lbs crab apples cleaned and picked over
1 stick cinnamon
If you like cloves, you could add +/- 1 tsp of whole cloves. I am not crazy for the taste of cloves so I didn't use them.
3-4 quart size canning jars with lids and rings
How to:
Set canning jars into a large pot of water so that they are completely covered with about an inch of water above the top. Bring to a boil and leave them boiling for about 10 minutes. Using canning tongs, carefully remove the hot jars from the water bath and place on a clean towel. Place the lids into a small, clean bowl and pour the hot water from one of the jars onto the lids to soften the wax seal.
Combine water, syrup, lemon juice and cinnamon stick and heat to boiling. Meanwhile, wash the apples (if you haven't already) and poke with a fork to prevent bursting. Add the apples to the boiling syrup and cook until tender. Remove the cinnamon stick, pour into prepared jars and poke around, making sure to remove any air bubbles. Using a magnetic tool, carefully place the lid on top and hand tighten the ring.
Carefully place the filled jars back into the water bath and boil for another 10 minutes. Use the tongs to remove the jars from the water and put back onto the towel to cool. Once they have cooled, check the tops to make sure they are sealed down and loosen the ring. They can now be stored in a cool, dark place until you are ready to enjoy them and you won't have to worry about those pesky fruit flies in your kitchen.
Ingredients:
6 cups water
1 cup maple syrup
2 Tbsp lemon juice
4 lbs crab apples cleaned and picked over
1 stick cinnamon
If you like cloves, you could add +/- 1 tsp of whole cloves. I am not crazy for the taste of cloves so I didn't use them.
3-4 quart size canning jars with lids and rings
How to:
Set canning jars into a large pot of water so that they are completely covered with about an inch of water above the top. Bring to a boil and leave them boiling for about 10 minutes. Using canning tongs, carefully remove the hot jars from the water bath and place on a clean towel. Place the lids into a small, clean bowl and pour the hot water from one of the jars onto the lids to soften the wax seal.
Combine water, syrup, lemon juice and cinnamon stick and heat to boiling. Meanwhile, wash the apples (if you haven't already) and poke with a fork to prevent bursting. Add the apples to the boiling syrup and cook until tender. Remove the cinnamon stick, pour into prepared jars and poke around, making sure to remove any air bubbles. Using a magnetic tool, carefully place the lid on top and hand tighten the ring.
Carefully place the filled jars back into the water bath and boil for another 10 minutes. Use the tongs to remove the jars from the water and put back onto the towel to cool. Once they have cooled, check the tops to make sure they are sealed down and loosen the ring. They can now be stored in a cool, dark place until you are ready to enjoy them and you won't have to worry about those pesky fruit flies in your kitchen.
Just remember that these are to be enjoyed as a treat. Maple syrup is still sugar, don't kid yourself. As you can see in the pic, I used a smaller jar to save the extra syrup to use in baking, on pancakes or in tea or spiced coffee. Why waste it?
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