It’s September – apple season – The apple is my soul fruit!
Apple cake, Apple puree, Apple chutney….and what about the leftover scraps?
For those of you who are like me and like using up every last bit of the ‘wasted’ scraps – don’t bin them!
Why not make Apple Scrap Vinegar out of them?
It’s simple.
Make sure you don’t use any of the badly bruised scraps, but everything else is ok, cores, pips and all.
Put the scraps into a wide-neck and sterile jug or bottle. Cover with de-chlorinated water (let tap water sit for 24hrs before use), and use 1 spoonful of sugar (honey works, too) per one cup of water you use.
Make sure all scraps are submerged in the sugary water – pack them right in and push them down. Maybe you even want to put a sterile weight on top, to keep them submerged.
Pop a little cloth over the bottle opening and secure it with a rubber band.
Now leave it in a dark place for 2 weeks. Check it daily, and you will notice that air bubbles will develop – that’s the fermentation taking place!
Push the apples down, to submerge them properly again, and get rid of all the air bubbles.
Do that daily.
Any pieces of apple that sit on top, and aren’t submerged properly, will easily get mouldy. You want to avoid that.
Soon you will notice a vinegary smell.
After the 2 weeks are over, decant the vinegar, and remove all bits of apple scraps.
You will end up with a cloudy yellow vinegar.
If stored in sterile bottles, this vinegar will keep for a long time.
And you will even be able to watch a vinegar mother grow on top.
You can use the vinegar mother to make any other vinegar, by feeding it with red wine, cider, anything really!
Get experimenting.
And all that excitement from just the humble little apple!
