Use for small bland apples

[Hinotori]

There is an old apple tree on the corner of our property. It had a bumper crop of apples this year. Unfortunately, they are small, hard and rather dry and bland. They were never sour early on, I had tried them. I don't think the tree was planted there, I think it probably grew from a tossed apple.

So they are no good really for eating, and I don't have any livestock other than chickens right now.

Any ideas on what I could use them for? I hate seeing them and thinking it's such a waste to leave them. I've thought about juicing them. They may make ok juice for cider or vinegar since what they do haven't isn't bad tasting, there just isn't enough for eating outright.

 

[~gd]

There is an old apple tree on the corner of our property. It had a bumper crop of apples this year. Unfortunately, they are small, hard and rather dry and bland. They were never sour early on, I had tried them. I don't think the tree was planted there, I think it probably grew from a tossed apple.

So they are no good really for eating, and I don't have any livestock other than chickens right now.

Any ideas on what I could use them for? I hate seeing them and thinking it's such a waste to leave them. I've thought about juicing them. They may make ok juice for cider or vinegar since what they do haven't isn't bad tasting, there just isn't enough for eating outright.

Chickens will eat them and might even think they are a treat [of course they can't be the only feed] as for juicing the cider is likely to be bland and tasteless the use of apple pie spices can help a lot! You might try them for cooking a little brown sugar and spices can help with the taste. And the vinegar will be getting its taste from the acid produced by the bacteria. [it might be slightly mild like rice vinegar] but it will be sour! If you have the time to spend I say go for it.

 

[Hinotori]

Hubby said put them up for chickens during the winter. He doesn't object to me trying some for vinegar, though.

 

[k15n1]

Hard cider. Natural yeasts are surprisingly cleaver at turning heirloom/fence-row apples into less complex carbohydrates and better flavors. I read that the normal use of apples and pears in the northern UK and northern France (where grapes don't grow well) is perry and hard cider.

 

[Denim Deb]

Have anyone you're mad at?

 

[Mickey328]

You could mix them in with some tasty, tart apples like Granny Smith of MacIntosh and make applesauce. You might try a small batch of apple butter, too...once they're cooked down, it might concentrate the flavor more, and with the spices, it could end up being pretty decent.

 

[Hinotori]

Have anyone you're mad at?

That made me laugh!



I'm going to go pick them all. There should be enough to play with and try a couple things.

I love the ideas, I hadn't thought of just mixing them with other apples to make stuff.

 

[Corn Woman]

I second the apple butter.

 

[Emerald]

Next year pick them early and make pectin out of them.

 

[Hinotori]

That's an idea.

I wasn't sure what the trees along the fenceline were. They looked applish, but they had been butchered by the previous owner. I was closing the gate the other day, and since half the leaves have fallen, the sun lit up a few little fruits. Those fruits on that tree are very tasty. I need to see if I can prune that tree into some shape and get more fruit out of it. There are two more of those that had been butchered along the fence there. No fruit, but maybe with some work I can get some.

The big tree with the bland apples is about 400 feet away from them. Trying to make pectin is a good idea. I just hate to waste something that is edible. The chickens will likely get most this year while I look for an apple press for next year. I'm going to cut up some and mix them with better tasting apples and make some crisp.