[bravemurphy]

We had a bumper crop too so this year we pruned the whole branches brought them home and took them off with a fork, it was much easier than last year and far less stress on the back.

We wont be buying any jelly for a while that's for sure.

[Maryann]

Re: Steamer.
Dead easy to produce juice of any kind. Just make sure your fruit is washed and take out any bad ones but you don't need to peel or prepare the fruit in any way. Apples I just wash and cut open. It's great for the little crab apples we have here as I use the juice from those to make my own pectin.

You don't need to waste the pulp either - you can add it to cakes or make jam or fruit cheese with it.

The Mehu Liisa steamer is expensive but if you can get hold of the instruction manual by downloading it online it is the best booklet I have seen. Lots of ideas and recipes and how to use the steamer - they are all basically the same so you can use this with whatever model you buy. Let me know if you can't find the manual and I'll try to get a link for you.

Not heard of tip using a marble but sounds good - might give that a go. Make sure you buy a stainless steel steamer not aluminium. Good luck.

[LotuSeed]

Thanks for the tip about the Mehu Lisa booklet. I've been looking at various stainless steel models as I don't want aluminum reacting to any of the produce and altering the flavor. I'd really like to do my own grape and apple juices this season!