[squink]

Hi
I'm looking for a tried and tested crabapple jelly recipe - one that's not too sweet. All the books state 1lb sugar to 1 pint liquid, but on a test run I thought it was so sweet you couldn't get the crabapple flavour. Don't know if have to stick to the ratio for the jelly to set though.
Also - all recipes say to cook the apples, then strain - has anyone used a kitchen juicer instead??? Couldn't bear the prospect of quartering millions of tiny apples (little marbles they are) so have juiced them instead - curious to know if this will damage/improve the flavour/setting capacity (am also going to juice a billion of them to make crabapple wine.....)
Look forward to any contributions....

[Sally A]

Hi Squink, I've never done anything with crab apples in my life but there is a recipe on the home page of this site which uses 4lb apple to 1lb sugar.

See recipes link halfway along the options above this page.

[Calou]

Aggy made a great one with chillies added, maybe her recipie is on here somewhere, I can't seem to find it but I'm sure she'll give it to you if you ask her  

[David.]

am also going to juice a billion of them to make crabapple wine.....)
Look forward to any contributions....

Cultivated varieties are likely to contain more sugar than wild crab apples.

I have pressed over 5 galls of crab apple juice this year (10 last year, but I have been given more cookers this year) and use a maximum of 10%/gall with other pressed apple juice for cider & wine. I save several gallons of pasteurised juice to blend with juice from early eaters the following year.

Crab apples, even those sour wild ones can contain more sugar than eating apples, but have a much higher acid content, so when you have fermented out all that sugar they will taste even worse, unless you sweeten after fermentation.

[agapanthus]

I did'nt bother to quarter mine....just threw them in a HUGE saucepan and cooked for about 20mins, adding the juice of a lemon to every 4lb and a little water. You could cut down the amount of sugar to about 12ozs to every pint and the addition of the lemon should bring out more flavour too. I think the apple do need cooking to get all of the flavour going. Hope this helps!
I did find tho' that I had to add some more water to the pulp when cooked 'cos it was very thick.

[gobs]

Yes, if tiny, cook them whole, in fact we only use the skin and core for jelly and make compote from the flesh.

Never tried juice, but I think it is the cooking that makes it set, just try little amounts on a cold plate as you go.

[tenderness]

This may be too late but there's a great preserving book by Oded Schwartz (called...wait for it... Preserving)
You may know it.

In there is the best crab apple jelly recipe I've found, though I am a beginner. But this one worked for someone relatively new to all this:

His recipe is for 1kg apples, which you halve, add water to cover, boil then simmer 20-25 mins til soft.
Strain in jelly bag til it stops dripping. For every 500 ml juice add 500g sugar. Other people may think this is too much, but I got a great set.

You can add chopped chillies, herbs, flower heads or leaves (lavender heads, geranium leaves, even whole chillies, though you need patience for this - do it when the jelly is half set, and see if you can get the chillies to not rise to the top of the jar...). It's been my fave jelly to make. So pretty.