# Apples, Pears, and Plums to Can & Dehydrate...Q



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

This year, I have more fruit to put up than usual! Since I have so many apples & pears, I'd like to ask what you all do with yours. The plan is to can apple slices, applesauce, make apple butter, and dehydrate apples. I'll be doing much the same for the pears. The plums will be canned & dehydrated.

I am not new to canning, but would love to hear the different ways you all prepare your fruits!


----------



## jwal10 (Jun 5, 2010)

We can and dehydrate the pears, the extras get juiced. We use pear juice to sweeten other canned fruits. Apples are made into sauce, and apple slices are cannned and dryed. We make 50 gallons of juice for cider and vinegar. We wrap pears in newspaper to ripen, apples get stored in shallow boxes. I like fresh fruit all winter. Plums are canned and juiced, Brooks prunes are dried. I cook a few apples down with a little brown sugar and top pancakes with it, hot....James


----------



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Thanks for posting! When you make your apple juice, are you using an apple press? I was Considering getting a steam juicer. Otherwise, hoping to come up with more recipes to widen the variety and also like fresh fruit, too.


----------



## happydog (May 7, 2008)

If you get a steam juicer be sure you get a stainless one. And get the larger size, 11 or 11.5 quart. I started out with the smaller 9.5 quart and decided it was so useful I went ahead and bought a bigger one. LOVE IT. It is so SO handy for doing tomato sauce/juice, apple sauce and juice, and chickens.


----------



## jwal10 (Jun 5, 2010)

We press it but have steam juiced it also. We like apple juice and cider better not heated, press it and put in a barrel....James


----------



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

happydog said:


> If you get a steam juicer be sure you get a stainless one. And get the larger size, 11 or 11.5 quart. I started out with the smaller 9.5 quart and decided it was so useful I went ahead and bought a bigger one. LOVE IT. It is so SO handy for doing tomato sauce/juice, apple sauce and juice, and chickens.


Yes, will get the biggest one; thanks for the tips!


----------



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

jwal10 said:


> We press it but have steam juiced it also. We like apple juice and cider better not heated, press it and put in a barrel....James


DH is planning to build a cider press, but in the meantime I need to put up a lot of apples as I can't store very many. So, I'll get a steam juicer first, then DH will eventually build me a press!


----------



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

I saw a YouTube of a gal making applesauce in her steam juicer while it was juicing. The end result was applejuice and applesauce both. Another YouTube showed a gal dehydrating apples, using the cores/skins in her steam juicer and making applejuice, too.


----------



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Right now, 9 trays of apple slices, some with Cinnamon, drying in my dehydrator. Also a big pot of applesauce on the stove. That is my start, wow there is more than I even estimated!

I will be dehydrating pears tomorrow...


----------



## romysbaskets (Aug 29, 2009)

I canned 18 jars of plums and 20 quarts of apple sauce. Once my right hand heals I will be able to make apple butter, canned pears, maybe some apple juice and more apple sauce. I was thinking about freezing slices instead of canning them. Apple crisp is just wonderful as a winter treat. Feeling quite pleased that I can dictate to my tablet.

Sounds like you have all kinds of good fun coming up?


----------



## Cajun Arkie (Jun 11, 2012)

You might like to make some pear honey. Just google for recipe. It is great for toast, biscuits, pancakes, ham glaze, or for turkey instead of traditional cranberry. I add lemon slices to mine while I am cooking and place one slice in each jar. Also mix it up and sometimes add a little cinnamon or a _little_ cloves. It's great over ice cream also.


----------



## Kato2010 (Jun 24, 2012)

Plum jam is amazing. I went out and got two new trees this year just so I could make plum jam again. It's one of my favourites.


----------



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone! Now, I am adding some new recipes...Pear Honey sounds yummy & so does Plum Jam. 

I took the plunge and ordered my Steam Juicer, a stainless steel 11 qt one:

Cook N Home NC-00256 11-Quart Stainless-Steel Juicer Steamer: Amazon.com: Kitchen & Dining

Evidence of my work so far:









Pears (3 different types of Asian Pears)









Apples (William's Pride, Liberty Apples, and one other)

The tablecloth? LOL, yes a Christmas design, however it is a good thick plastic lined one that protects my 1940s mahogany table, when I want to use it for tasks like this.


----------



## Canning Girl (Jan 13, 2010)

This year I made quite a bit of applesauce with my new Victorio press. I also mixed some cooked, pureed plums with applesauce to make a plum-flavored sauce, and then I got really crazy and mixed applesauce, plums, and pureed pears. It was delicious!


----------



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Thanks, another great idea, Canning Girl, think I'll try that! It beats doing just the basics and with this much surplus, I can experiment all I want!

My Steam Juicer has been shipped, so I should get it by next week!


----------



## happydog (May 7, 2008)

You'll love your steam juicer.


----------



## Ms.Lilly (Jun 23, 2008)

I made plum bbq sauce this year, it is really good. I use my steam juicer for all sorts of juices, but haven't had alot of luck with the apple juice. Yes I use multiple varieties of apples, but is still tastes weak to me. I would like to hear how yours turns out.


----------



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Ms.Lilly said:


> I made plum bbq sauce this year, it is really good. I use my steam juicer for all sorts of juices, but haven't had alot of luck with the apple juice. Yes I use multiple varieties of apples, but is still tastes weak to me. I would like to hear how yours turns out.


Do you use the apple juice as a concentrate or drink it full strength? Plum BBQ sauce sounds good!


----------



## bluebird2o2 (Feb 14, 2007)

I canned apple pie filling.also apple jelly.


----------



## Ms.Lilly (Jun 23, 2008)

The apple juice would be as is just juiced and canned, if we liked it.


----------



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Miss Lily, I did research about after you mentioned not caring for the apple juice. We have 8 different types of apples, so I wanted to know which one were best for juice. I'll post some varieties, after I look it up again today. Turns out the variety used makes quite a difference! What kind did you steam juice?


----------



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Okay, took the leap to make pear butter. Wow, hard to believe that many pears resulted in 3.5 pints! I didn't have jelly jars, so used pints. It should be called "Pear Gold!" Okay, enough of that, NEXT!

I'll post what recipe sucks me in next!


----------



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

I realized the same number of pears it took to make 3.5 pints of Pear Gold were equal to the amount it took for 3.5 QTS of dehydrated pears! I told DH, I hoped he liked the Pear Butter, since I won't be making anymore this yr. Pear Preserves sounds good...


----------



## Ms.Lilly (Jun 23, 2008)

I can't give you the names because they were unknown by the owner of the property. I made sure I picked from 5 different trees and tasted each one for flavor. By the way 28 lbs yielded me 1 gal of juice. I was actually thinking about purchasing some that I would actually know the variety and giving that a try.


----------



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

We have 8 different kinds of apples, but DH took tags off the trees and didn't remember all the varieties he had planted, before we met. After reading about which were the best juicing apples, I was pleased to see we had two Fuji Apple trees (highly rated for juicing. We also have King, Liberty, Gravenstein, and some mystery varieties. I am going to get the apples ID'd so I will know what the are. Since Fuji's are juicy apples, I'd think the juciest varieties would make the best juice.

I also have neighbors up the road with extra fruit every yr. I will offer them 50% of what I make in juice (I'll get my jars back)


----------



## Ms.Lilly (Jun 23, 2008)

Let me know how it turns out. Please.


----------



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

The Applejuice turned out tasting good, but it definitely wouldn't have been strong enough to add water to! I don't know if I did anything wrong, but draining off my apples and tasting that? It was better and stronger flavored.


----------



## happydog (May 7, 2008)

Hey Lori, I just saw this and thought of you. Plum cordial. Prick raw plums all over with a fork and place in jars. Add some sugar, and barely cover with the booze of your choice. They say it's heavenly. I've never tried it but I may experiment with some of my pears. 

I don't have a recipe, just the general method. If it sounds intriguing I would imagine you could get a recipe online somewhere.


----------



## jwal10 (Jun 5, 2010)

Granebsteins are good, a little green gives a tarter juice....James


----------



## KIT.S (Oct 8, 2008)

Wow, that's a lot of apples for little reward, Ms. Lilly! I get 5 gallons of juice from 15 gallons of whole apples. My son set up a 12 ton hydraulic press for me to make apple juice, and it works like a charm. We have a dedicated little chipper-shredder to chop the apples, and the Harbor Freight press to squeeze it, and I put up lots of apple juice. Actually, I'm on the computer waiting for the current batch to come out of the canner!
Kit


----------



## ChristieAcres (Apr 11, 2009)

Well, I can definitely recommend one Apple that stands alone for making excellent juice...KING Apples!

Earlier this afternoon, I picked most of the King Apples off our tree. There weren't that many, but this variety is large and very juicy!

After reading how much juice was extracted from pressing vs steaming, I was sold on using another method. I figured it would be worth the cleanup, so I pulled out my Omega Juicer. Rather than use the paper filter, I opted to juice without. I wanted to find out just how much juice I could get. Since I have different varieties, I researched which ones would make the best juice.

One King Apple netted 10oz of delicious juice. I am not freezing it, but canning it. I asked DH to taste it, and he was thrilled, told me not to add anything! I have 5 pints and 1 quart almost ready to rptake out of the canner. This only took 12 apples! Some were larger than others, so I didn't avg 10oz per apple. For that amount of juice, you'd have to clean out the basket 4 times.

I told DH that I WS so glad he had that variety when we got married... When we bought this place, we dug up and moved 16 fruit trees! All are bearing, but some took a few years..


----------

