What to do with apples, part 1: Apple Pie Filling

Yesterday, Mr. Zen and I got the opportunity to pick apples at a local orchard.

We left with about 2 bushels of apples - over 80 pounds. About half of them are sweet apples and the others are tart. I don't know the specific apple varieties, though.

So, I'll give you one guess as to what I was doing last night. Yes, you guessed it, I was putting up apples. I started with apple pie filling.

First of all, before I get into the recipe, let me tell you that there is one thing I am extremely grateful to have:

an apple peeler/corer/slicer.

This thing, to me, is worth its weight in platinum.

Last year, we had a whole truckbed full of apples. Mr. Zen and I peeled and cored them by hand. It was awful! Right then I swore (a lot) that I'd get myself one of these apple peeler hand crank machines.

The day I found one at my local farmer's Co-Op, I snatched that bad boy up and never looked back. It has been a lifesaver and it definitely paid for itself last night. What took me hours last year only took me minutes this year.

This year, one of the things I did with the apples was make freezer apple pie filling.

It is possible to can apple pie filling, but in order to do it, you have to have a special ingredient: ClearJel. ClearJel is a special starch thickener that is heat stable and can withstand the canning process without breaking down, separating, or otherwise compromising the acidity of the food.

The problem is, ClearJel normally isn't available at your local grocery store. The only places I've ever seen it have been online, from restaurant supply stores or specialty online retailers. I've always wanted to try it out, but I've never ordered it. Perhaps I'll get some this year and have it on hand for next year's canning.

Anyway, if you don't have ClearJel, you can't safely can apple pie filling. If you want to preserve any, then your other option is to freeze it.

Making apple pie filling for the freezer is pretty easy. The only special equipment you need are the freezer containers (I don't recommend freezing pie filling in freezer bags - it's just too mushy and messy). You can use freezer boxes, canning jars, or those plastic freezer jars.

FREEZER APPLE PIE FILLING
6 lbs. apples (about 18-20 medium apples), peeled, cored, and sliced
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
OR - you can substitute 1 3/4 tsp. apple pie spice for the cinnamon and nutmeg
2 Tbsp. lemon juice

Pretreatment solution to prevent browning:
4 cups cold water
1/4 cup lemon juice

Peel, core and slice apples. Dip in pretreatment solution (either water/lemon juice as above, or Fruit Fresh as per label instructions). Drain.

Mix sugar, flour, and spices together. Sprinkle over apples and toss well to coat. Let apples sit for 3o minutes, until juices begin to flow.

Place apples in a large pot and add lemon juice. Cook over medium heat until mixture begins to thicken, stirring frequently.

Ladle pie filling into freezer containers and allow to cool to room temperature - no more than 2 hours. Seal containers, label, and place in freezer.

Yield - about 4 pints.

You can use this pie filling as you would in any pie. It's also great as a cobbler, in apple crisp, in turnovers, or as "fried apples."

My 9 year old son makes "shortcut" apple turnovers with this filling:

TATER'S APPLE TURNOVERS
1 can refrigerator biscuits ("whomp" biscuits)
apple pie filling
cinnamon sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Open can of biscuits. Take one biscuit and roll it out or pat it by hand to between 1/4 inch and 1/8 inch thickness.

Spoon about 1 Tablespoon of pie filling in the center of the dough. Fold the dough in half over the pie filling to form the turnover. Press the edges of the dough together with a fork to seal.

Place turnovers on a baking sheet and sprinkle with a little cinnamon sugar.

Bake 7-9 minutes or until turnovers are golden brown.

Try not to eat them all at once!

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