Apple harvest
There aren’t too many apples on the trees this year, and honestly, they’re not the best apples we’ve had. But they’re still perfect for dehydrating and jellies and sauce. I wanted to put something up that I could send to Erik in Iraq, and since glass jars are definitely out, I thought some dried apple rings would fit the bill.
For the first batch of dried apples, I peeled them, then sliced apples about 1/4 inch thick (or slightly thinner) into lemony water. (I microwaved a lemon for a few seconds, chopped it, and squeezed the juice into a bowl with enough water to cover the apples.) I didn’t core the apples, but that’s just a matter of preference–I love the little “star” at the center of the apple. The apple slices went into the dehydrator for about 24 hours, until they were quite dry and leathery. Unfortunately for Erik, the rest of my family thought they were very good, so a second batch is in the dehydrator today (with apple skins left on–very pretty). I’ll hide them as soon as they’re dry, or else I fear that Erik may never get any.
I saved all of the leftover apple peels and ends, and I turned them into a quick jelly. There wasn’t much juice left in all of the trimmings, so I threw it all into the crock pot, covered the peels in an equal amount of water, and set the crock pot to low all day, then gently mashed the pulp, and proceeded as with any regular jelly recipe. I only ended up with three 1/2 pints of jelly, so I’m not sure it was worth the effort, but I’m sure it will be tasty, and it certainly is an economical recipe. There was even some pulp leftover for compost. Not bad!
I am sure Eric will treasure those dried apples! Yum! Annie, you are so smart! Take care of everyone.
What sort of dehydrator do you use? I want to purchase one, but there are so many brands and types out there. I would use the dehydrator to dehydrate fruits and veggies, make fruit leather, raisins, prunes. please email with info if you can.
Thx
Mary K
Mary,
My parents have the The Big -1 Harvest Savor, which used to be made by Vita Mix. We’ve had them for over ten years. It is just a simple continuous fan dehydrator with stackable round trays. I’ve never used any other dehydrator, so I can’t give you recommendations on a new dehydrator. Sorry!
Annie,
By equal amounts of water to peels, do you mean for every cup of peels, you add a cup of water? Sadly enough, our tree didn’t produce that much either this year.
Prayers for your husband and family,
Cathleen
Cathleen
That’s exactly what I mean, but you don’t need to be too scientific about it. As long as you completely cover the peels with water, it should be fine.
Annie