Another Culinary Windfall...

Crab Apples For Jelly

   I now have two and a half five-gallon buckets, filled with crab apples!  

My aunt and uncle have a gorgeous tree that's been producing these little gems for years. They've faithfully raked, gathered and then tossed them..until we talked about it last growing season. I asked if I could have them to make jelly, and they generously said yes!

Crab apples typically ripen before the larger apple varieties, so it works out well for me. I picked up all they had gathered from the windfalls, and then the three of us shook the tree and picked up the rest on Wednesday. They've never sprayed the tree, so there are some imperfections (and a few bruises from their great fall), but I can work around all that. Bonus is that there are no chemicals on or in the fruit.

As of last night, I my first "no added pectin" juice from the first three pound batch. I'll be turning it into jelly later this morning. By the time I'm finished, I'll have plenty for the pantry, some to gift, and likely, some to sell in my online shop and to my Facebook friends. Three pounds of apples was a mere "drop in the bucket" of what I have to prepare. I'll keep track of how many jelly jars get filled.

 

First thing today, Handsome and I are running an errand about an hour south of the farm. We're looking at something special - perhaps for the farmhouse. If it comes back with us, you'll be nearly the first to know. It's definitely going to be a busy day!