Making Grape Juice

This post is to show how to get this....

from this...

and this.






First of all I have to say that I use one of these steamers to make my grape juice. If you are serious about making grape juice you must, must, MUST beg, borrow or steal one of these steamers (okay, don't steal - but do procure one somehow)! Prior to using this I had tried several methods of making grape juice including heating and mashing the grapes and straining through cheesecloth, which is too time-consuming and messy and is really a hassle, especially if you are dealing with a large quantity of grapes.

I had also tried one of those juicer machines, and while they may work fine for a carrot-beet-pickle juice cocktail, I would not recommend them for making grape juice.

I never did try the Lucille Ball method and dance around in a vat of grapes. While it looks like it could be a hoot, I don't think I could get past the ick factor. I might wash your feet if I am feeling particularly Christ-like that day, but please don't ask me to eat something that your feet have squished. I just don't think I can do it.

So here we go:

First I fill my canner with quart jars and water up to the rims of the jars. I want to pre-sterilize my jars by boiling them for at least 10 minutes because I will not be heat-processing them later. There are several reasons why I will not be processing my jars, the main one being that the juicer will produce 1-2 jars of juice at a time with enough time in between jars that my first jars have usually sealed by the time I am filling the next few jars, and before I can get a canner full. For extra safety you could put the filled jars into the canner and keep the water just below simmering as you fill the canner up and then process the whole thing for 20 minutes.

To the bottom layer of the steamer I add water. This will create the steam for the steamer.





Keep checking this pan frequently, as you will have to keep adding water over time. This is the part directly on the burner, so it is possible to boil it dry, which you don't want to do...not that I would have any personal experience with that or anything.

On top of the pot of water is the reservior for holding the juice. This has a spigot attached to it that you use to fill your jars.

On top of this is the colander that holds the grapes. See those holes? Those are what the steamed juice will drip through into the juice reservior below.

Now wash your grapes. Here are some lovely Concords.

Add to the colander on top. I try to use at least half of the grapes as Concord grapes. If I use more than half as table grapes it just does not have the same "grapey" flavor that we like. Nothing wrong with using all table grapes, just we prefer a little more of that traditional Concord grape flavor to our grape juice.

Really fill her up - as much as you can fit in and still put on the lid.

Now turn on your burner, start boiling that water and creating steam. (You want your jars pre-sterilized and ready to go before you turn on the steamer because it will start to produce juice fairly quickly. You don't want your juice reserviour to overflow before you have jars ready to fill!)

You can add a little sugar to the grapes in the steamer basket. Or you can add about a tablespoon of sugar directly to each jar as you fill it. Or you can go completely sugarless. But we usually like just a bit of sugar added.

Have your lids simmering in a seperate pot.

Carefully remove a hot jar and using the spigot fill to 1/4 inch from the top. If you are going to process in the canner then leave 1/2 inch at the top. Watch out as you fill the jars. The steam will rise up and can burn your hand if it is held directly over the top of the jars. Wipe the top of the jar with a clean washcloth and apply a hot lid using a magnetic wand lid lifter. (I love my lid lifter!) Screw on a band. You will need to use a washcloth or towel to hold the jar as you screw on the band because it will be very HOT.

I slide mine out of the way now (with a a little air space between jars) and let them cool. At this point you could put the jar back into your canner and keep it warm while you fill the rest of the jars and then process them all for at least 20 minutes and then remove to a towel covered counter to cool. Either way you should check the lids for proper sealing after jars have cooled.

Here is the fruit of my labor. I ended up with 88 quarts of grape juice this year (not all in this picture!) Grape juice anyone?

Making Applesauce

Aren't they pretty? I have made applesauce before, but this is the first year I have made it using a strainer attachment for my Kitchen Aid. And let me say that it makes the job MUCH easier. Here is how i did it....

First get yourself some apples. These are from Williamson's Orchards. They sell them by the bushel using bushel baskets, so the weight will vary. I did weigh my baskets though and it worked out to around 30 cents a pound. (One of the problems with posting months after you do something is that little bits of information that i thought were stuck in my "steel-trap brain" have escaped. The trap has sprung...) Anyway, i tried to get a mix of at least two different kinds of apples. Three or more is even better. For some reason with applesauce a mix of apples works best. I don't remember what kinds, another escapee from the trap. Sorry. I will try harder next year. Maybe.


Next you want to wash those puppies real good with dish soap and water. I mean really scrub them. We will not be peeling them and will be cooking them with the skin on, so you really want to get any dirt and pesticide residue off. (Unless you like these things in your applesauce. Who am I to judge?) Since we are cooking with the skins on it probably would be even better to go with organic apples.

Now get a really big pot. I am using a canner here. Put a couple of inches of water on the bottom, 4-6 cinnamon sticks, and then fill the thing up with chopped apples. Just chop the whole apple into 4-8 pieces, depending on how big your apple is. Throw it in, seeds, stems and all. You can also sprinkle in a little lemon juice or fruit fresh at this point to keep the apples from browning too much. But it is totally optional. You are going to cook them right away, so they won't get too brown. Now bring your water to a boil, reduce the heat to simmer, and put a lid on. Stir the apples occasionally so that they all get cooked evenly. Keep simmering until they are soft.

While the apples are cooking get yourself all set up. (This is also a good time to make sure you have your canning jars clean and ready to go as well. ) Here is the attachment. It is a Fruit and Vegetable Strainer. I also bought a bigger tray to hold the apples. You will see in a minute. The cool thing about this is that it "poops" out solids I don't want (seeds, skins, etc.) and the applesauce comes out the other side. You can use it to make a bunch of stuff like tomato sauce, hummus, etc. Also if you remove the strainer portion you have a grinder that you can use to grind meats and stuff. So I should use this more than once a year. We will see....

This is how it looks set up.

Now spoon your softened apples onto the tray, turn it on, and push them down the hole with the pusher tool provided. Make sure you do NOT put any cinnamon sticks down the chute. They get stuck in the strainer and will constipate the situation, so to speak. Hypothetically speaking, of course. Not that I would ever do this....

Here is the "poop" of apple skin and seeds that comes out.

Here is the sauce. Now you can taste it and add more sugar or cinnamon if you so desire. To preserve it you would now spoon it into the size canning jar you want and process it in a water bath. For my area applesauce is processed for 30 minutes in a water bath canner for quart jars.