Apple Making Frenzy

This is what we did ALL weekend last weekend. Ok ... so, first you pick your apples (or apples that a friends will let you pick) ... then you wash them, peel and core them and cook them. So far so good. After they get soft you put them through the apple mill/grinder/juicer/sifter thingee that your good friend from work lets you use because his dad quit doing this after 30 or 40 years. The bowl of "gooey stuff" is what the skins, cores and seeds reduce down to. I forgot to take a picture of the "guts" that make the apple sauce and apple butter before you once again cook it to get it up to boiling. If you're making apple sauce, you put the boiling apple sauce into boiling hot jars and them cook them in the canner. If you're making apple butter, you put the apple guts along with some seasonings into a crock pot and cook it forever, then you have to water bath the jars of apple butter. The bottom line on both is that they are simply stated ... DELICIOUS! The process is time consuming and messy ... but we are having a blast and so far, it is worth it to us. I think I have accidentally put a picture of wild blackberry jam jars here too. That was also messy and rewarding! And delicious! This weekend Paul & Charles are going to make hard apple cider! I will be standing by with the pressure washer to clean up the kitchen!! Stay tuned ... more to come. Paul & Cheri