The Apple of my Eye

Today and yesterday was for me all about apples. A week ago Filip and Barbara bought a lot, and I mean a lot of apples. From these apples we will make a nice vinegar that we will use for pickling vegetables so they will last us in the winter months and of course add it to our meals and salads.  

I started this process by soaking the apples. By soaking the apples we try to take off as much of the fertiliser used as possible since these are non organic apples. After an overnight soak we wash them really well and start cutting them. I cut them in relatively big pieces by quartering the apples and cutting them once horizontal without removing the core. Since we are making vinegar of them the apples don’t have to be perfect though I removed the pieces that were not that nice looking. 

After cutting the apple we add them to a big barrel and fill this up with water making sure we apples are under the water. Then we mix about four kilograms of sugar making sure that everything is dissolved. Now the waiting starts. The vinegar has to stay in the barrels for a minimum of 3 months, though the best is to keep it for one year. After removing the apples you can leave the vinegar in a barrel or bottel it. The vinegar is ready to use, but according to Filip, the best vinegar stays for another to years to mature before consumption.