Apple syrup and candied Apple crisps

So, being grounded for my whole summer holidays, I turned my kitchen into a busy place. Kind of. And only on the days I could literally stand through the process of preparing or cooking. 

At the end of May I started pickling Japanese plums in sugar, to get a sweet and sour and tangy syrup that’s popular and loved in Japan and Korea in summer.

 You can use it to make Soda or mix it with spirits. Or you can mix it with hot water to have a reviving tea. And you can also use it for cooking as well. It’s great for meat marinades or as a sugar substitute in sweet and sour stir fried dishes. 

I extracted the first batch the other day, and filled the wizened plums up with Shōchu(Sake). That will rest until November now.   

However, plum season is long over. And with autumn knocking on our doors heavily, I tried to make apple syrup. 

To clean the apples throughly I used backing powder mixed in the water

For all kind of fruit syrups, best are fruits that are in season. I read up that you best use a ratio of 1fruits to 1.1sugar. 

I used 4 apples and one lemon, which weighed up to 500+ grams. Then I pickled them in 1.1 times the amount of sugar in a sanitized jar. 

don’t forget to put a cloth between jar and pot to avoid damage

Cut apples in thin half-moon sizes or quarter slices and layer sugar and apples(plus lemon slices) until everything is used up

The last layer should be sugar. The apples juice out quickly, so if there’s not enough space in the jar, dont be afraid to press it down with power.

Right after I closed the jar, the apples already started to juice out.

From now on, it’s important that you give this apple/sugar mix a good stir, two or three times a day. Put the jar somewhere in your kitchen where it’s not too hot or sunny, but where you can see it. 

I tilted the glass every morning, noon and evening for a day, and from the third day I gave the mix a good shake several times to avoid the same apple slices being on top all the time. 

I also opened the lid once a day, because I wasn’t sure if apples would ferment and be kind of gasey, you know. 

I gave the syrup one week to get ready, but I can imagine that this would depend on room temperature and the weather of where you are. Just keep an eye on it, and trust your guts. 

I strained the syrup and pasteurized it at 70-85 degrees Celcius before I filled it in bottles. 

I got one and a half bottles of syrup from 500 grams fruit and 550 grams of white sugar

And now the best part of this Syrup procedure! Make Apple crisps from the marc. Don’t throw the syrup induced apple slices away!

I put them on a baking sheet and into a 140 degrees Celcius pre-heated oven. I turned them around after about 30 minutes, lowered the heat and let them dry for another 30 minutes at 120. But the length of the oven drying process strongly depends on the thickness of your slices (mine were about 3mm) and how dry/crisp you want them. 

Voila, now you have crisp candied, oven dried apple slices to snack on. they are delicious, I swear!

I’m running out of space in my fridge, and can’t find enough ways to use all the syrup up without trespassing my calorie intake line. But I really want to try to make Grape syrup next. They are in season now, and red grapes are said to have a pain remedy effect. That’s why I’m eating them every day right now, or drink cold pressed grape juice first in the morning. 
Happy Syrup Making!

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