Living in my new home for the last few years I have made some discoveries, one being that there is a apple tree on the property. I had no idea about this when I bought the property, never pointed out by the previous owner. But it has some tasty apples, last year I made some apple sauce with them and it was so good. I had to made it again this year.
Using only well water, a little cinnamon, sugar and cored apples (not skinned). I cook it down, mash it.. cool it. Use the immersion blender on the chunks, and then put it back on to simmer for an hour or so to cook off some of the water.
So many apples to pick from, looking for the most red ones is key. I use a long pole with a claw basket to collect them.
The cultivar of this tree is unknown, would love to have a way to find out what kind it is.
It is massive, at least twenty feet tall. It needed some love, had a bunch of dead branches on it. So last year I lobbed off many of them and I think the tree is happy with that.
Seeing all the apples up there, there must be hundreds. This tree must be very old.
Its hard to see them all.. many of them are still ripening and quite green.
Soon the upper apples will be ready as well.
This tree has been wood peckered more than anything I have never seen.. yet its still alive and producing much fruit.
The holes go all the way up the trunk.
It has been fun having an apple tree, the wild life enjoy it too. We get crows feeding on them. And near end of season those apples get really ripe and the crows get a little drunk and hop around and fall over. lol there must be some fermentation going on in those ripe apples.
Probably should start spraying the tree with insecticidal soap, the japanese beetles really like to the leaves and go after the tree.
Though none the less we still get many fruit, even with the onslaught of insect damage this tree has taken.
If anyone can tell what kind of apples these are from the looks of it I would love to know.
We think they may be crabapples.. but not completely sure.
Whatever they are, they can be eaten raw.. or made into tasty foods.
Having a tree that produces fruit like this is priceless. Such an old established tree so a gem on the property and really glad to have it.
Maybe one day we will find out what kind of apples they are, but for now I will cook with them as much as possible. With so many left on the tree it will be time to collect more soon. Entire buckets full, to make many yummy things.
With all the apples cored out, and sliced up. I put them in a pot with water boil them for a bit to soften.
After they soften, I mash them up and then blend it all up. And cook the sauce down for an hour or so. It changes from a blonde color to a darker color once fully cooked.
From two large bowls of apples I was able to make four jars of apple sauce.
It should last me a few months. I enjoy having it with ice cream, or as a side with porkchops. Or just a spoon full whenever I want. Keeping it in the fridge should keep it stable for long enough to eat. We may freeze the larger jars but I may need to remove some from each jar so it can expand frozen.