If you’re looking for help on how to make homemade apple cider, chances are it’s autumn, or soon will be. Making apple cider in mid-September always signals a shift into fall for me.
So as I’m prepping and making apple cider from our apple trees, we will show you how to make non-alcoholic apple cider as well as cider with alcohol. We’ll also cover which apples to use, how to make cider from fresh apples, or juice, and how to turn the leftovers from your cider into flavorful applesauce or fruit leather.
How Many Apples in a Pound? Approximately…
- 2 large apples = 1 lb.
- 3 medium apples = 1 lb.
- 5 small apples = 1 lb.
This recipe goes by the pound rather than by the number of apples, to make the recipe more accurate.
Not everyone has access to a food scale though, and we want to accommodate all cider enthusiasts, so here’s a general guide.
- There are approximately two large apples in a pound. For this recipe, use eight apples.
- Three medium apples make a pound. For this recipe, use twelve.
- Five small apples will roughly add up to a pound. For this recipe, use sixteen to twenty.
Many gardeners prefer to use their ugliest apples to make cider, applesauce, and fruit leather because the blemishes can easily be cut off without affecting the appearance of the meal. But do not use rotten, moldy, or mildewy apples.
It’s okay to use bruised, cut, or even insect-touched apples. Slice off the damaged bits and use the rest of the apple for the recipe. If you do need to cut off some pieces, remember that you will need to add more apples to make up for what you have taken off. This seems obvious, but it’s an easy detail to forget once you get started.
Which Apples to Use for Apple Cider
The apples you should use for cider completely depends on your taste and what you have available.
It is completely okay to use one variety of apple, especially if you are growing your own orchard. If you have access to more, your cider will have more depth, layers, and flavor.
Apples for Making a Sweeter Apple Cider
If you prefer a sweeter cider, try using one or more of the following apples:
- Golden Delicious
- Red Delicious
- Yellow Delicious
- Gala
- Sweet 16
- Splendour
- Cortland
- Honeycrisp
- Fuji (or my personal favorite, Daybreak Fuji)
Looking for something a bit more tart or acidic flavor?
Apples for Making a Tarter Apple Cider
- Pristine
- Pink Lady
- Goldrush
- Braeburn
- Melrose
- St. Winesap
- Jonathon
- McIntosh
Finally, these apples have a good blend of sweet and tart flavors:
Sweet and Tart Apple Cider
- Zestar
- Ginger Gold
- Blondee
- Swiss Gourmet
- Jonamac
- Crimson Crisp
- Pixie Crunch
- Suncrisp
- Golden Russet
- Camero
- Virginia Gold
How to Turn Apple Cider Refuse Into Applesauce
After you have taken your liquid from the batch of apples you boiled, you’ll be left with solid apple pieces. Remove the cinnamon sticks. I like to put those in a few random cider jars, but what you do with them is completely up to you.
Take the leftover apple pieces and blend them in small batches. You should pulse them to the desired consistency you prefer in applesauce. Most people prefer smooth, but a few of us like a few small lumps left in for a more interesting texture.
You may now add more sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, or clove if you wish. Adding lemon juice will add another layer of flavor while keeping the applesauce a tan to yellowish gold color, rather than going darker brown. Dark brown is completely fine, healthy, and natural, but it’s okay to want to preserve the natural color of the apple, too. Taste the sauce as you add lemon juice to ensure that you still like the flavor and don’t overdo it.
Now you can put this applesauce in your refrigerator where it will keep for one to two weeks. You also have the option to freeze it, where it should taste fresh for about a year, or can it, where it should also taste fresh for a year.
How to Turn Apple Cider “Waste” Into Fruit Leather
If you want a delicious fruit leather that will remind you of fall, this is the best way to do it.
Remove the cooked fruit from the pot to blend or puree it. You can use a blender or a food processor. Make sure you pick out your cinnamon sticks first, because you do not want those to go into your fruit leather.
If you want to add more sugar, spices, vanilla, or lemon, now is your chance to do that.
Next, line a rimmed baking sheet with a reusable silicon sheet. Pour the puree onto the sheet until it is about an eighth to a quarter of an inch thick.
Place this in the oven, and set the oven to 140 degrees Fahrenheit. The thicker your pour, the longer it will take to dry. Most of the time, this will take eight to twelve hours. I would suggest starting this in the morning so you can monitor your oven all day, but I know that some prefer to do this overnight while they sleep.
Your fruit leather is ready when you can poke it with a utensil and it isn’t sticky at all. When it is dry, remove it from the oven and let it cool for a moment.
Now you can roll up your fruit leather and store it in an airtight container in the pantry, refrigerator, or freezer. It lasts about a month in a cool dark pantry, a couple of months (or longer) in the refrigerator, and at least a year in the freezer.
How to Make Apple Cider from Fresh Apples
Fresh Apple Cider Recipe
Homemade apple cider is easy to make and an awesome thing to do.
While you can find good apples year round these days, it's especially good to do in fall and winter when you can find more local fresh apple harvests.
So let's get to it!
Ingredients
- 4 pounds apples, diced
- 1 orange, sliced
- 5 cinnamon sticks
- 1 Table