Freezing Apples
#111995 - 10/11/04 09:22 AM
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sperry_twiggins
Reged: 01/30/03
Posts: 158
Loc: Beautiful Pacific Northwest
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Hi all,
The apples are in and they're coming too fast for me. Has anyone had any luck freezing apple pieces?
What method do you use?
Can one freeze applesauce?
sperry_twiggins
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You can definitely freeze applesauce. I don't know about freezing apple chunks, though... I imagine they'd be pretty nasty when thawed. (I'm picturing mushy and brown... eww.)
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I was thinking that too, but then look at all the frozen pies at the grocery store. Maybe they use some special industrial freezing process we can't duplicate at home.
I did some web searches and book research, and one web site said not to freeze apples and one book said to go ahead.
sperry_twiggins 
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Then again, maybe not. I've never bought a frozen pie like that before; aren't they already pre-cooked, and you just bake them through a second time? I'm thinking that cooked apples freeze just fine, but raw ones would be kind of funky texture-wise. But I could be wrong.
I'd say that if you're going to cook with the apples once they're thawed, go ahead and try it!  I wouldn't count on being able to thaw them and eat them as-is, though.
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Peel the apples, cut 'em up, and toss them in a bowl with sugar and just enough lemon juice to moisten them. Pack in freezer bags and remove all the air before sealing and freeze.
You can't "eat them fresh" from the freezer like that, but they're fine for baking.
Better yet, make applesauce. That freezes just fine.
Best results I ever had with an excess of apples is to cut them up and mix in a bowl with lemon juice, sugar, cinnamon, and cornstarch -- just like you're making pie filling -- and then can that in quart jars. Canned pie filling.
Apples also dry very nicely, and you can get a really good dryer for under $50 at walmart.
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Thanks for the advice, you two!
Kelly, do you have some advice for me for next year regarding spraying for worms? It's such a shame to lose so much fruit to pests, but I hate using horrible chemicals on my fruit. Can you suggest any products or homemade potions?
Thanks in advance!
sperry_twiggins
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This comes from a cookbook I compiled and edited for our local museum group. I was amazed when I read this and I didn't believe it worked, so 2 years ago I tried it. I keep taking the jar out to look at it and the contents and it looks just like the day it was done. A friend opened hers and they were just as good as when she first put them up. Talk about EASY!!! 
Quote:
Fill a sterilized quart jar with peeled cored and sliced raw APPLES . Cover with TAP WATER , making sure they are all covered. Now get ALL the air out. Before you seal them, let them set for an hour or so and bubbles will be popping up everywhere. Run a knife down around the inside of the jar and even more will come out. Tap the sides. If you don't get all the air out it's not really a big thing but the top apples will turn dark. Drop 2 ASPIRIN TABLETS (they must be aspirin) on top of the apples and seal with sterilized Mason jar lids. These will keep for many years. To use drain and rinse.
If your freezer space is minimal at best, this is a handy alternative, not to even mention the nice gifts they would make if you have an abundance of apples.
Kandee
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