Our amazing cider press caught the attention of many-a-youngster this season. Catching an eye, I would ask the little ones, “what do you think I’m making?”  The usual (screamed) reply was, “APPLE JUICE!!!”  When I’d offer the correction of cider, not juice,  said Excited Child would either give me an adults-think-they’re-so-smart-with-their-semantics eye rolling, or a vacuous stare of incomprehension.

But really…aren’t the kids right? After all, if I squeeze an orange, I get orange juice. Squeeze some grapes – grape juice. So what the heck is the difference between cider and juice?

In my research (on, ahem, the interweb), I’ve found a lot of information and anecdotes surrounding the difference between juice and cider. Some folks stipulate that cider is made from apples picked a little early. Others say that juice comes from whole-crushed apples, instead of pre-shredded ones. Even others contend that pasteurization makes a juice, full stop. (NB: Pasteurization involves processing a food to slow and/or reduce the number of microbiological ‘food baddies.’ Heating to a certain temperature does this, as can using UV light. Note that pasteurization is not the same as ‘sterilization,’ which will kill any living thing and usually make whatever food product a lot less tasty).

But in reality it’s in the filtration of the liquid. Apple juice is usually filtered to remove particulate matter as well as pasteurized to lengthen its shelf life.  The filtering removes those tiny, tasty apple floaties which cloud the liquid and make it oh-so rich and creamy. To many peoples’ chagrin, we at Not Far From the Tree have been pasteurizing our cider, just to ensure that we’re keeping folks safe from anything harmful that might be in our cider.

So what if you’d like to try making your own apple cider but don’t have the cumbersome contraption that we were lucky enough to get our hands on this year? Don’t fret – you can do it at home!

How To Make Your Own Apple Cider

Wash, core and quarter some apples (removing any bad parts), then throw them in your blender (you could add a bit of water if you need to).  There’s no need to peel them, but you can if you’d like to. Usually a variety of apples makes a better taste. Take the pulpy mash and strain it through a cheesecloth. (I prefer to use a clean pillow case).  You’ll have to put a bit of finger muscle into it to squeeze as much of the liquid out as possible. To pasteurize, heat it to 71◦C for one minute, add some cinnamon to taste, and serve. Ta-da!

Tags: apples cider press DIY