Apple cider!!

Yesterday was the magic day to see whether the apple cider was a success or not. I had the glassful in the above picture this morning, after it had chilled overnight, and it was AMAZING! I documented everything with pictures as I went along, especially for you, Maria. :) If you happen to have a cider press, you're in luck! If not, this is how you make your own cider at home:

I started with about 50 apples which made about 3 liters. Make sure the apples are firm with no bad spots or mold. If there is a small spot, just cut it out. Thoroughly wash the apples, then wash all the containers, peelers, jugs, etc. in a solution of bleach water, 1 Tbsp per gallon, to kill any lurking bacteria that would ferment the cider more quickly. I used my handy dandy apple peeler/corer/slicer (purchased at Target for $12 back home, which has been worth the investment 50 times over!) to make short work of preparing the apples.

Don't worry if there's a little peel left on the apples. I think it just makes it sweeter! :)

Puree the apples in a food processor or blender until smooth and the consistency of applesauce.

Place the apple pulp in a clean cotton pillowcase, placed in a large jug or container. Hold it above the liquid and begin pressing and sqeezing the liquid out. (this took about 80 minutes for me and it was very tiring as I didn't have anywhere I could hang the pillowcase and just let it drip) At the end I had a ball of pulp a little larger than a baseball that I tossed.

Place the cider in disinfected bottles, preferably glass, but I used plastic. Put a cotton stopper in the top so that as fermentation takes place, the gas can escape instead of exploding the bottle. (good idea!) Let the cider sit 3 - 4 days, for sweet cider (this was perfect for mine). If you're after apple alcohol, let it sit for 10 - 14 days. The sugar will then turn to alcohol and you will have a dry apple wine. You can also drink the cider right away if you prefer it fresh.

After the cider has ripened, heat it to 160 F, 70 C, to remove any possible salmonella-carrying bacteria.

Remove from heat and place in a clean plastic jug or container. Chill thoroughly and drink within 7 days. (no problem there!!) I'm planning to have some fellow Americans over next week for cider and warm gingersnaps! It really was quite easy to make and I'm sure I'll be making this again!