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Red Hot Apple Wedges

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TasunkaWitko View Drop Down
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    Posted: 21 October 2011 at 12:12
Red Hot Apple Wedges
Recipe from The Ball Complete Book of Preserving
 
Makes about 8 pint jars
 
Ingredients:
 
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup cinnamon red-hot candies
2 Cinnamon sticks (each about 4-inches long)
2 tsp whole cloves
1 tsp ground ginger
2 cups water ( I used distilled)
1 1/2 cups vinegar
2/3 cup light corn syrup
2 Tbsp red food coloring (optional)
24 medium-sized apples, washed,peeled,cored, cut lengthwise into eights, treated to prevent browning. You can use 1/4 (cup?) lemon juice in 4 cups water or commercial citric powder in water to prevent browning.
 
1. Prepare canner,jars and lids
 
2. In a large stainless steel saucepan, combine sugar, cinnamon candies, cinnamon sticks, cloves,ginger,water,vinegar, corn syrup and food coloring if you are using. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. Add apples and stir gently over medium heat until the apples are heated through, about 6 minutes. Discard the cinnamon sticks. Turn off heat, but leave saucepan on heating element while filling jars.
 
3. Using a slotted spoon, pack the hot apples into hot jars to within a generous 1/2-inch of top of jar. Ladle hot syrup into jar to cover apples, remove air bubbles,  leaving 1/2-inch headspace, if necessary add more hot syrup to adjust the headspace to 1/2-inch. Wipe the rim. Center lid on jar. Screw band down until resistance is met and then increase to finger-tip tight.
 
4. Place jars in canner, ensuring they are completely covered with water.Bring to a boil. Once the water is boiling, process the apples for 15 minutes. Remove canner lid and let pot sit for 10 minutes. Now you can remove the jars, cool in a draft free location for 24 hours. Once cooled, remove rings, check to be sure jars sealed, wash jars,label and store in your pantry. Any unsealed jars should be eaten in 3 days.
 
For now, I'll borrow this picture from http://yellowrockcountrygirl.wordpress.com/ until I get these made and get some pictures of my own:
 
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TasunkaWitko View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 October 2011 at 09:22
i made these last night. the recipe above actually made enough for 10 one-pint jars, but unfortunately one broke while i was loading them into the canner. the stuff tasted really good going in - i'll give it a week or two before trying them.
 
some notes:
 
>>>You can use 1/4 (cup?) lemon juice in 4 cups water or commercial citric powder in water to prevent browning.<<<
 
for the amount of apples in this recipe, it seems that 1 cup of lemon juice in 8 cups of water works better.
 
>>>Once the water is boiling, process the apples for 15 minutes.<<<
 
don't forget to adjust the time for your altitude.
 
>>>Remove canner lid and let pot sit for 10 minutes. Now you can remove the jars...<<<
 
i've always been told this was a bad practice, but i could be wrong.
 
method described above is not the same as in the ball blue book, so i will make the corrections when i do the write-up. as i recall, the ingredients are the same, but there are a couple of procedural differences that may or may not matter.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote DIYASUB Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28 October 2011 at 05:46
 Thanks Ron!Angry
 Now, not only do I have to invest next month's SS check in pint jars for about forty pounds of kraut that will be ready for canning by Thanksgiving, you've gone and fired up my curiosity with this recipe and I'll also have to get another case of jars for these apple wedges!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28 October 2011 at 08:43
ha HA, Bill! glad i could inspire you!
 
i really enjoyed making this. there were a few odd apple wedges left over, and i enjoyed them quite a bit while waiting for the jars to process.
 
the recipe is great as-is, but i am already brainstorming - i'm thinking this might really really take on another dimension of goodness if i try it with apple cider vinegar rather than white, and possibly apple juice or apple cider rather than water. i might give this a shot - without the red food colouring - and see how it goes. i'm thinking that it will be a blast of apple with a nice kick, and something that might really be homeey in a new-england or upper-michigan-peninsula way.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 September 2013 at 22:03
Assuming that these are properly  prepared and processed, does anyone have any guesses as to the practical shelf life? I have a few jars left; all look fine except one that looks much darker than the others, possibly due to the cinnamon stick and cloves....

Any thoughts would be appreciated!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote HistoricFoodie Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 September 2013 at 06:39
I'd guess the darkening comes from oxidation, Ron. The jar is probably a little shy on syrup.

From a food safety standpoint, properly canned goods last two days longer than forever. There can be quality losses with some products, though, over time.

Generallly speaking, food science folks suggest using home canned foods within two years. But I've gone much longer than that with no ill effects.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 September 2013 at 09:57
oxidation was the first thing i thought of, brook - but i couldn't think of a cause that didn't involve a failure of the seal, which wasn't the case. your explanation makes perfect sense. i'm guessing that from a quality standpoint, the contents of that one can be discarded?

i cracked open a jar of "normal-looking" wedges, and they tasted great! i made them late october of 2011, so there you go! 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote HistoricFoodie Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 September 2013 at 18:18
i'm guessing that from a quality standpoint, the contents of that one can be discarded?

Not necessarily, Ron. The darkening can be strictly cosmetic. If not, just discarding the darker portions would leave the rest (the part that was in the syrup) as good as the ones you just ate.

For future reference: If you can something like this, and lose a lot of the syrup during processing, it helps if you turn the jars every two weeks or so. That keeps the contents bathed in syrup, and prevents---or at least seriously minimizes---that oxidation problem.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 September 2013 at 18:40
Good to know, Brook - thanks!

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote africanmeat Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 September 2013 at 04:55
Ron what was the taste like ?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 September 2013 at 08:19
Good morning, Ahron! The taste, to me, is excellent! All of the aroma and spices of Autumn rolled into one, with an apple/cinnamon tone holding it all together and the vinegar providing just enough sour to balance everything out. The apple wedges become soft, yet still hold their shape and each bite is somewhere between an apple and applesauce in texture. I am really a big fan of these! Tongue
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 11 January 2016 at 18:13

I’ve had these photos for years, but have never gotten around to posting them. As I recall, the camera’s battery died halfway through the process, and I always had intended to take more photos the next time I made this. I haven’t yet gotten around to that, but these photos should cover the important aspects of the project.


Here’s a shot of everything you need to make this recipe:



Not pictured: lemon juice and distilled water.


I used Braeburn and Granny Smith apples; both worked very well, as far as taste - but as I recall, the Braeburns held up better to the water bath, retaining their texture without becoming overly-soft.


While I was peeling and cutting the apples into wedges, I kept them in a mild solution of lemon juice and water, to keep them from turning brown:



Meanwhile, I brought the the ingredients for the “hot syrup” to a boil over medium-high heat:



The red food colouring is optional, of course, but I really liked it for this recipe.


The spices used in this recipe are just right for the season; warm, inviting and comforting, like a cozy fire on an autumn evening.


Once the syrup was boiling, I reduced the heat to medium and added the apples:



I then stirred them around in the syrup to coat them:



Of course, they quickly picked up the “red hot” colour from the cinnamon candies and the red food colouring, but that’s the whole point of the recipe, no?


You just want to heat the apples through - about 6 minutes; discard the cinnamon sticks and shut off the heat, but leave the pot on the stove. After that, simply pack the apples into your jars with a slotted spoon and ladle the hot syrup into the jars, leaving 1/2-inch of headspace:



It was at this point that my camera died, but the rest is easy; simply process the jars according to the recipe, then allow them to cool naturally and check the seal before shelving them.


I really enjoyed these apples, and will certainly make them again. I wasn’t able to make them this past fall, but plan on doing so this coming autumn.,


If you’ve got some apples and jars lying around, this is a great way to preserve them and enjoy them any time of the year. The flavour profile is of course suited for fall or winter, but imagine them on a sunny spring day, or served on top of vanilla ice cream in the summer - delicious!

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote pitrow Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 12 January 2016 at 09:50
Thanks for bumping this Ron, I meant to make it last time it surfaced, but it's slipped my mind. I'm writing it down right now and will make it this weekend, barring any unforeseen events slipping into my schedule. 
Mike
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 12 January 2016 at 17:42
I hope you get it made, Mike - if you get a few photos, be sure to post them! Tongue

These are definitely on my list for some time this year. In my head, I think of them as an autumn thing, but the truth is that they are great any time! Star
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 September 2016 at 16:02
Originally posted by pitrow pitrow wrote:

Thanks for bumping this Ron, I meant to make it last time it surfaced, but it's slipped my mind. I'm writing it down right now and will make it this weekend, barring any unforeseen events slipping into my schedule. 



Mike - it's a perfect time of year for this!
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