apple season is almost over

i have discovered the coolest thing this year. i knew how to make applesauce and pies, but i didn't know you could make juice and jelly. turns out, i don't really like the jelly but the juice is rich, thick and sweet and wonderful hot like cider. the really cool thing is you can get the juice from the same apples you make sauce out of.

i've successfully done it 3 ways:

1) use an apple peeler/corer (or peel by hand if you're superwoman) and save the slices for sauce, butter, rings or pies. take the leftover cores and peels and throw them in a big sauce pot. measure the depth of the apples from the bottom of the pan and fill the pan with water to about 1/2 that depth. simmer until the cores will poke through easily with a fork. drain the cores/peels with a flour sack/jelly bag and voila--juice.

2) cut up whole apples including skins and cores into chunks. throw these in a big stockpot and fill with water to 1/2 the level as in example #1. simmer until the apples are soft all the way through. strain in a flour sack or jelly bag and dump the leftovers in an apple/food mill and run through and voila--juice & applesauce/butter.

3) mix leftover peels and cores with cut-up whole apples to make a full batch and render in the same manner to make juice & sauce. i did a 15 quart pot 1/2 full of peels and cores and 1/2 full of whole apples. i got 5 quarts of juice and 3 quarts of very thick applesauce and only 1 quart of waste (skins & seeds).

NOTE: the juice will be pink or red unless you use green or yellow apples. it's very pretty.

i'm totally getting the most of my apple bounty.