Skip to main content

Pickled Apples




A few weeks ago, we went apple picking and came home with 50 pounds of apples. I had a few dishes in mind that I wanted to make, and this was one of them. I made pickled apples last year, and loved them. Of course, I didn't note the recipe or the source of the recipe.


I searched high and low, but every single recipe I found used red hots (yup, the candy) as a flavoring. Well, that kind of goes against everything we are trying to do (not to mention, it sounds kind of gross), so I kept on looking. Still, no luck. Using the red hot recipes as a guide for safety, I paved my own road. Ok, more like repaved a road that many had previously traveled, but still....


The final product turned out great, taste wise. I had a very difficult time canning these suckers though. The apples just did not want to stay put. I'm talking serious float. I haven't been canning that long and I'm still super clumsy when it comes to canning fruit. It seems like no matter what I do, it all floats. Usually it's not too bad, but with the apples, I'm actually a little concerned about the safety. The apples weren't entirely covered with the brine and there was very little head space. To be safe, Craig and I will not be sharing these apples (I can deal with giving us botulism, ours friends not so much). So, keep this all in mind if you decide to follow the recipe below. And if you have any pointers, for god's sake, share them!


Pickled Apples

makes 6 pints


6 pounds apples

3 cups sugar

3 cups water

2 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar

2 tsp whole cloves

4 4-inch cinnamon sticks

Vitamin C tablets


Create an anti-browning ascorbic-acid bath by dissolving crushed vitamin C tablets in cold water. Working one apple at a time, peel, core and slice. After slicing, place in the vitamin C bath.


Bring the sugar, water, vinegar, cloves and cinnamon sticks to a boil. Drain apple slices and add to the brine. Bring back to a boil and simmer 5 to 7 minutes. Pack apples in pint jars and cover with brine. Leave 1/2" headspace and process for 15 minutes


**I've said it before and I'll say it again: These are not thorough canning instructions. If you have never canned before, I recommend taking a class. There are a number of precautions one must take to avoid poisoning oneself and one's loved ones with botulism.**

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Bacon Makes it Better - Roasted Cabbage with Bacon

As I mentioned in this week's check in , roasted cabbage with bacon is one of my favorite dishes. The sweetness of the cabbage and onions with the smoky saltness of the bacon just can't be beat. There are a bunch of very similar recipes all over the internet, but I first saw it over at the kitchn . Roasted Cabbage with Bacon adapted (slightly) from Faith Durand 's recipe at thekitchn.com 1 head of green cabbage, outer leaves removed, cored and quartered (I've made this with red cabbage and it's just as good) 2 red onions, peeled and quartered 5 slices of thick bacon, cut into large pieces Salt and Pepper Heat the oven to 450. Place the cabbage and onion in a large roasting dish. Drape the bacon over the veggies. Please in the oven and cook 15 minutes. Flip the cabbage and onion and place back in the oven for another 15 minutes. Check your cabbage - if it's roasted to your liking, toss with salt and pepper to taste and serve. If it needs furth...

Mushroom Soup

It's been a while since our last post, as our friends Gabriel and Tracey were visiting from San Francisco last week.  They are two of our most favorite people; smart, funny and fun to be around. If you get a second, you should check out Tracey's blog, warm as toast . She writes tidbits about her life and things that inspire her. It's the first thing I look for when I log in to google reader. While you're at it (and while I am shamelessly promoting my friends), check out u-dot music to listen to some of the music Gabe has worked on. Gabe and Tracey love food as much as we do, so we spent the better part of the week drinking a bit too much and eating way too much. To counterbalance the week of excess, I was in need of something nutritious, earthy and easy. The answer: mushroom soup and green salad with red wine vinaigrette (if you are looking to move away from packaged/processed/pre-made foods, salad dressings are the easiest place to start....more on that later). I...

Red Wine Vinaigrette

If you are trying to get away from pre-packaged, processed foods, salad dressings are the easiest place to start. Any dressing can be made at home, from a simple vinaigrette to a creamy blue cheese. My current favorite is a red wine vinaigrette. This couldn't be easier to make and I always get a ton compliments on it when I serve it to guests. Here is a rough guide (it's not exact enough for me to really call it a recipe - adjust the amounts depending on how much dressing you need at the moment). Red Wine Vinaigrette garlic, one clove roughly chopped salt dried oregano dried basil fresh ground pepper red wine vinegar olive oil The trick to making a yummy salad dressing is starting with a garlic paste, using a mortar and pestle. Place the chopped garlic and a few pinches of salt in the mortar. Using the pestle, grind into a paste. It should look something like this: Once you have your garlic paste, put in whatever container you are going to use for storing and serving the dressi...