An apple is the most common and very beneficial fruit in its properties. It is difficult to name a corner on earth wherever one knows about it. It is used both fresh and used as raw materials in cooking, wine production, the preparation of juices and fruit drinks. What to do with apples for the winter? Recipes will be presented to your attention further.
The benefits of apples
This fruit contains a huge set of trace elements and vitamins, which for the most part remain even after processing. What to make from apples for the winter? Simple and tasty preparations can be prepared according to the following recipes.
The easiest winter harvesting
Of the abundance of juices, the most common is apple. It is used as a base for combination with other types of berries and even vegetables. If you are the owner of a juicer, then preparing fragrant apple juice for the winter is not difficult for you. In addition, it will take very little time.
How to make juice from apples for the winter? For its preparation, it is advisable to take solid sweet and sour varieties, collected immediately before cooking, then they will not lose their juiciness. First, apples must be washed thoroughly, cut out all damaged or crushed areas from them and squeezed using a juicer. You can grate them on a coarse grater, but this is a very time-consuming process. Filter the resulting juice through cheesecloth. If the mass is rubbed on a grater, then you need to squeeze it through several gauze layers and pour into an enameled pan (an aluminum container is not suitable for these purposes, since the acid contained in the juice can give a reaction, and the taste will change).
Next, you need to put the container with juice on a strong fire, bring to 90-95 degrees, but do not let it boil. Remove the resulting foam. Juice will become lighter. Leave the pan from the heat and strain again, put it on the fire again, but already heat to a temperature of no higher than 80 degrees.
While the liquid is warming up, sterilize the glass jars and immediately pour the juice into them, roll up the lids. Your vitamin drink for the winter is ready! You can not warm it up a second time, but then it will turn out less transparent, with sediment.
Apple compote
If you have a large surplus of fruit, and there are no conditions for their preservation in fresh form, you can compote them for the winter. Such apple drinks are very tasty and aromatic. And if you add another sprig of mint to them, you will get a delicious compote with a tonic effect. For their manufacture, solid sweet and sour varieties with dense pulp, but already completely filled, are also suitable. Unripe apples are not good - they will not add flavor to your product. In addition, it is not recommended to take fruits overripe or soft varieties, they simply boil, turning into a kind of porridge.
If you have chosen large apples for cooking, then you need to cut them into several not too small parts, remove the core, you can not cut the peel, because it contains a storehouse of vitamins. Fruits should not have decay and damage. If your apples are small, then they can be preserved whole. It is advisable to divide the fruits into varieties in order to avoid their uneven boiling.
How to make compote from apples for the winter? Fruits must be kept in cold water for 30 minutes, but no more. Then remove them and blanch in pre-cooked boiling water for 5-10 minutes, again place them in cold water for 20-30 minutes. This procedure will allow apples to maintain their appearance, remain intact and not blacken in a cylinder. The broth in which the fruit was blanched does not need to be drained. It is useful when brewing syrup.
While your apples are soaked and blanched, you need to prepare the container: thoroughly wash the jars, pour over boiling water and let them dry. You can just sterilize. Next, start putting apples in dry jars. It is advisable to fill the entire container with fruit. Then the compote will turn out saturated and with a pronounced apple flavor. At the end, pour pre-cooked hot sugar syrup.
Cover the banks with lids, sterilize. The duration of this process depends on the container capacity: from 15 minutes for small cans and up to 25-30 minutes for containers. You can apply the double fill method. To do this, you need to fill the fruit with hot syrup. Then let them cool, drain the liquid into the pan. Bring to a small boil again and pour again. Banks can be closed immediately without sterilization.
Your vitamin drink for the winter is ready! It remains only to open canned food on a cold evening, dilute the compote to taste with boiled water and enjoy the aromas of summer! One more tip: such canned fruits can be used for fillings in sweet cakes, after wiping them through a sieve.
Compote assorted
Apples combine well with various fruits and berries. You can make a blank for the winter by combining several types at once. However, apples must remain the basis, of course.
A good assortment is obtained with a combination of only two parts. For example, apples and apricot. The fruits of the latter are thoroughly washed, the bone is removed. It is important to do the heat treatment correctly in order to prevent apricot digestion. Therefore, apples are first prepared, as if on a regular compote. Then blanched with apricot. After this, everything is packed in a prepared container and is also poured with syrup. To avoid sterilization, you can use the double fill method.
Berry Juice Drink
If the question arises, what to make from apples for the winter, then think about preparing this particular compote. Instead of syrup, you can take pre-prepared berry juice. It can be from red or black currants, raspberries, cherries. It depends on your taste and the ripening period of the berries.
Such a compote is prepared according to the above standard recipe, but instead of sugar syrup, saturated juice from berries with the addition of sugar is used. Preparing the fruit for this compote is similar to the classic recipe.
Berry juice is squeezed in advance and combined with sugar, brought to a temperature of 80-90 degrees and poured into apples laid out in banks. This type of compote is subject to mandatory sterilization for 20-30 minutes, the method of refilling is unacceptable - berry juice will lose its useful components.
Apple jam
This type of preparation is the most favorite delicacy among adults and children. Prepare it when the crop is already harvested, and the fruits are sorted. Substandard fruits will go to its preparation. Before processing, apples are washed well under running water and dried on a cloth. Then they are cut into small slices, the core is necessarily removed.
How to make apple jam for the winter? In a saucepan we combine granulated sugar and about two glasses of water, put on a slow fire. Stirring constantly, we are waiting for the complete dissolution of sugar and bring the syrup to a boil. Then gradually pour the chopped apples into it. We are waiting for the mass to boil, and reduce the heat under the pan, leaving the fruits to boil and periodically removing foam from them.
We achieve complete thickening of the mass, and then lay it out in a container. We roll up the lids and turn upside down on a previously prepared place. Wrap the jars, leave to cool completely. This jam is stored for several years, without changing its taste.
Small fruit dessert
Another thing you can do from apples for the winter is to make jam from whole apples. Such a delicacy will not leave anyone indifferent. It is tasty and looks beautiful. For its preparation, you will need the fruits of the smallest size. The main thing is that they are not overripe. For 1 kg of apples you will need 1 kg of granulated sugar.
Rinse the fruits well, prick each fruit with a needle, transfer to a saucepan. Separately, we prepare sugar syrup, and after boiling it and completely dissolving the sugar, we pour in the prepared apples. We leave the fruit in syrup for a day. Then we put the pan with apples on a small fire, bringing them to a boil, cook for 5-7 minutes. Leave again for a day. After the indicated period of time, we bring it to a boil again and cook for 5 minutes, remove and put it into containers, roll it up.
Apple puree
This dessert is especially useful for children. To keep the puree longer, you do not need to add sugar to it. For its preparation, sweet varieties of apples, fully ripened, are suitable.
Next, we consider how to make applesauce for the winter so that all vitamins and other useful trace elements are preserved in it. To prepare a classic dessert you need:
- apples in an amount of 1.5-2 kg;
- water - 0.5 liters;
- 200 grams of sugar;
- juice of half a lemon.
The fruits are well washed, the peel and core are removed, apples are cut into small slices. After preparation, the fruit should be poured with water and add sugar, put on fire and cook for 20-25 minutes after boiling, stirring continuously. Remove from heat, rub through a sieve or grind with a blender. Boil for 5-7 minutes, put in sterilized jars and allow to cool for 24 hours. If you want to make diet puree, do not add sugar. In this case, the period of boiling mashed potatoes will be 10 minutes.
Apple puree for babies
What to make from apples for the winter, when the baby appeared in the house? This question is often asked by young mothers. It is known that mashed potatoes for babies are both useful and economical. It does not require the addition of sugar and will be most useful for replenishing the child’s body with vitamins in the winter.
For its preparation, you need to take high-quality, without damage, sweet apples. In order to avoid an allergic reaction, it is better not to use red fruits. Free the fruit from the peel, remove the core and cut into small slices. Pour cold water in a small amount, because apples will give their juice when heated, and the puree may turn out to be too liquid. Put on medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the stove and grind with a blender.
To make sure that there are no lumps in the puree, and to give it a more delicate structure, you need to rub it through a sieve. Put on fire, heat to 60-70 degrees, put into sterile jars, roll up the lids, wrap and let cool. Mashed potatoes are ready! Throughout the winter, your baby will enjoy a delicious and healthy treat.
Jam from apples
How pleasant it is to drink aromatic tea on a cold winter evening! In addition, with a pie stuffed with apple jam, cooked with your own hands. Without a doubt, relatives will appreciate your efforts.
Jam differs from jam in a thicker homogeneous mass. In addition, during its preparation, the boiling point is higher than in other recipes. Another advantage is that it can be made not only from benign fruits, but also from damaged, crushed, overripe ones. The main thing is that they be approximately the same in maturity.
How to make jam from apples for the winter? Fruits are washed and cut into slices, they are necessarily released from the core. The peel can optionally be removed.
In this case, it is allowed to chop apples in any way:
- grate;
- pass through a meat grinder;
- extinguish in a small amount of water.
When making jam, the right choice of dishes in which it will be cooked is important. Aluminum containers with a thin bottom will not work, and if the pan is enameled, then mass burning cannot be avoided. The proportions of the preparation 1: 1 - part of the apples and the same amount of sugar.
Stew grated or minced fruits before boiling. We wipe through a colander or sieve, add sugar, mix thoroughly and put on low heat, stirring continuously to avoid burning. Cooking takes 30-40 minutes, depending on the juiciness of apples. When the mass thickens, transfer it to the prepared jars and roll it up. Delicious pies are provided in winter!
Harvesting apple jam for the winter
What can be made from apples for the winter, except for traditional mashed potatoes, jam and compote? Of course, jam! It is similar in consistency to jam, but has its own cooking technology and density, different from jam. This is a very valuable piece of baking topping. The peculiarity of making jam is that it is cooked over high heat.
Fruits are preliminarily peeled from the core and peel, and then boiled in a small amount of water for 10-15 minutes. The boiled apples are thrown into a colander, allowed to drain excess fluid, covered with sugar and put on a big fire again. After boiling, screw the gas and cook, stirring, until a homogeneous mass is obtained.
The readiness of the jam is checked by the way it flows from the spoon. In this case, a thin thread should form, and its drop after cooling has an uneven wrinkled surface. Ready jam is removed from the fire and wiped. Another readiness criterion - when rubbing, it does not stick to the hands.
When cooking, it is advisable to use a thermometer, since its sterilization depends on the temperature of the finished jam. If the temperature has reached 106-107 degrees, then this procedure can be skipped. If less than 105, then sterilization is necessary. Ready jam is laid out in banks, rolled up and stored in a cool place.
Apple confiture
This is a simple and easy to prepare type of workpiece with a jelly texture and a minimum amount of sugar in the composition. To prepare the workpiece, the apples must be washed, remove the seeds and cut into small pieces. Add a little zest and lemon juice, water to the sliced fruits, so that it covers the fruit about 2/3 in height.
Bring the mixture to a boil and simmer over low heat for 25-30 minutes, closing the lid. When the apples become soft, set them aside and let cool slightly, removing the zest of the lemon. Grind the cooled mixture to a puree condition using a sieve or a blender. 1 tablespoon of gelatin pour 1/3 cup of water and allow to swell, put on fire to dissolve.
In the finished apple puree, add sugar to taste, put on a slow fire and with a thin stream, stirring, pour in the gelatin. Cook until thickened. Arrange in pre-prepared containers, roll up and wrap, allow to cool. This option for making jam preserves all the beneficial properties of fruits.
Now you know what to make from apples for the winter. Today there are a huge number of recipes, you just have to choose the most suitable for yourself.