HowDoIMakeAppleJuice

　　Makingapplejuiceiseasy.

　　Step1-Selectingtheapples

　　Themostimportantstep!Youneedapplesthataresweet-thatwilleliminatetheneedtoaddanysugar.Mostapplejuicedoesn'thaveasmuchnaturalsweetnessorflavorbecausetheyuseunderripeoroff-specapples.Youcanchoosethebestapplesyoucangetandmakefarbetterapplejuice.Don'tgetmewrong,itisfinetouse"seconds",aslongasyoucutoutthebruisedspots!Ifyoucan,chooseapplesthatarenaturallysweet,likeRedDelicious,Gala,Fuji,Romeandalwaysuseamixture-neverjustonetype.ThisyearIused4bushelsofreddeliciousandoneeachofFuji,YellowDelicious,GalaandRome.ThismeantitwassosweetIdidnotneedtoaddanysugaratall.Andtheflavorisgreat!TheFuji'sandGala'sgiveitanaromaticflavor!HoneycrispandPinkLadyarealsoexcellent,sweet,flavorfulapples.Step2-Howmanyapplesandwheretogetthem

　　Youcanpickyourown,orbuythematthegrocerystore.Butforlargequantities,you'llfindthatreal*farmer'smarkets,liketheFarmer'sMarketinForestPark,Georgiahavethematthebestprices.In2012,theywereavailablefromlateSeptemberat$14to$30perbushel.2013prices,thankstoabundantrainfall,arelikelytobegoodattherealfarmer'smarkets,liketheAtlanta-ForestparkGeorgiaStateFarmer'sMarketandorchardsinthesoutheastoftheU.S.

　　You'llgetabout12to20quartsofapplejuiceperbushelofapples.Counton15or16quartsperbushel.*-notthecutesy,fakefarmer'smarketsthatarejustwarehousegrocerystoresthatcallthemselvesfarmer'smarkets.Step3-Washthejarsandlids

　　Now'sagoodtimetogetthejarsready,soyouwon'tberushedlater.Thedishwasherisfineforthejars;especiallyifithasa"sanitize"cycle,thewaterbathprocessingwillsanitizethemaswellasthecontents!Ifyoudon'thaveadishwasherwithasanitizecycle,youcanwashthecontainersinhot,soapywaterandrinse,thensanitizethejarsbyboilingthem10minutes,andkeepthejarsinhotwateruntiltheyareused.Leavethejarsinthedishwasheron"heateddry"untilyouarereadytousethem.Keepingthemhotwillpreventthejarsfrombreakingwhenyoufillthemwiththehotapplejuice.

　　Putthelidsintoapanofhot,butnotquiteboilingwater(that'swhatthemanufacturer'srecommend)for5minutes,andusethemagnetic"lidlifterwand"topullthemout.

　　Step4-Washandchoptheapples!

　　I'msureyoucanfigureouthowtowashtheapplesinplaincoldwater.

　　Choppingthemismuchfasterifyouuseoneofthoseapplecorer/segmenters-youjustpushitdownonanappleanditcutsitintosegments.Note:Youdonotpeeltheapples!Youwillputtheentireappleintothepottocook.Step5-CooktheApples

　　Prettysimpleputabout4inchesofwater(Iusedfilteredtapwater)onthebottomofahuge,thick-bottomedpot.Putthelidon,andtheheatonhigh.Whenitgetsreallygoing,turnittomediumhighuntiltheapplesaresoftthroughandthrough.Hardwarestoressellafruitsteamer.Ihaven'tusedoneyet,butIheartheyworkwell.NOTE:Ifyouhaveaelectricjuicer,youcansimplyjuicethechoppedapples,thenskiptostep7toheatthejuicetoboiling.Step6-Sievethecookedapples

　　Nowyouwanttoseparatetheliquidfromthepulp,skins,seeds,stems,etc.Therearequiteavarietyofwaystofiltertheapples.

　　Unfilteredjuice:

　　Ilikeanaturalappleju