THE Grape Juice Recipe

I can't tell you about the wonderful grape juice concentrate recipe yesterday

without actually posting it

(Here you go, Jenn! :) )

 (The grape juice concentrate is up there in the left-had corner).

Besides my just being nice, of course, by posting it here for you,

my other reason is that it is a tiny piece of paper that the Amish woman wrote it on,

and if I put it on here, I know where to find it if the paper happens to get misplaced.

Here is it:

Grape Juice Concentrate

10 lb of concord grapes

7 cups of water

3 pints of sugar

Pull grapes from stems and remove bad ones.  Measure out 10 lbs. and put into a large bowl.

Add the water.  Crush the grapes (I used a potato masher).  Then add sugar and press some more (she made sure to tell me that the grapes should be pressed before adding the sugar).

Run through a Sauce master or something to separate the juice from the grapes.  

Heat to a full boil and then fill jars and process as for grape juice recipe.
(Ladle hot juice into jars leaving 1/4" headspace.  Adjust two piece caps.  Process in a boiling water bath canner for 15 minutes: pints and quarts).

(My other recipes in my books say not to boil the grape juice, but I did per the Amish recipe and it tastes great).  

The juice is a concentrate and can be mixed 3 qt. water to 1 qt. juice, although I like mine sweeter and less like a koolaid, so I usually find 2 qt. to 1 is better.  Adjust to your own taste.

A Prized Possession: Grape Juice

I could see her as she stepped from her house,

her face questioning why I was there.

"I was told that you might have some grapes I could buy?"

God provides the little things.
I am not sure why it always surprises me that He does.

We have been on a slow journey toward trying to eat better.

I say slow because it takes time, money, and gaining knowledge

to eat better in a world where there is so much to be learned

about the intricacies of our bodies

and how everything works together.

And then, of course,
it isn't an easy thing to completely change instantly.

Ten years ago,

when I heard some of the many things I know now about eating in a more healthy way,

I had a really bad attitude about it.

Not that that is unusual or anything, 

as I'm sure my Farmer can attest.

I don't like change,

and I like sugar and easy foods.

But I know that anything worth doing

often takes effort and sacrifice.

So I have tried to alter the most dangerous things we eat

and work on the new knowledge I seem to constantly bump up against

as time and issues demand.

And so I went about asking God to help me find some natural grapes

so I could can some healthy juice for us.

Our grapes have not done well yet.

We get a few handfuls, but not nearly what we need to make juice.
I am a very poor grape vine trainer as I just can't seem to grasp the best way to prune them.
I hope someday to understand them.

I went to the Amish produce auction and asked if they ever had any grapes for sale

that hadn't been sprayed by harmful chemicals,

and the auctioneer directed me to this woman.

As I paid her, she seemed happy;
she told me she had processed six times the amount she had sold to me
and still had more to pick.
When I asked her how she had processed them,
she led me into her home and jotted down while she explained the recipe to me.

I came home happy to have the grapes,
and interested to see how well her recipe would turn out,
 a recipe taught to her, an older woman, by her mother-in-law.

So, here is how it is made:

After the grapes were sorted so that only the good ones were used,

I added water to the grapes before smashing,
as she specified,

and then smashed the grapes and added the sugar.

Having a food mill is essential for this recipe,
but I don't know how I would live without my mill anyhow
as I use it for applesauce, tomatoes, and grapes.

For the grapes, a shorter insert is used
because the seeds would jam it up.

It is done just as the tomatoes were done
except the grapes are fun through before being cooked.
Also, I ran the grapes through the mill two or three times,
until the pulp was too thick and was jamming the mill.

(Although, I found the ketchup was made thicker and less wasted by running it through the mill 2 or 3 times as well.)

After it was milled, the grape juice was heated to a good boil

and then put into sterilized jars with sterilized lids.

I found that they sealed on their own,

but processing would be wise if you are worried about them at all.

We have found this recipe to be the best so far:

less waste, and the juice is concentrated:

2 - 3 jars of water may be added to one jar of grape juice.

It proved to be a good savings to make the grape juice

as organic grape juice is pricey.

It is a step toward eating and drinking better quality food,

and I am thankful for the steps...

especially when they are as rewarding as this.

Linking Up To:

Wearethatfamily.com

See my other recipes from the 31 days of recipes for the month of October.

Grape Juice Concentrate

Zucchini Bread and Butter Pickles

Zucchini, zucchini, zucchini!

Have you ever noticed that when you grow squash, there's so much of it, you end up giving it to your neighbors, friends, family,

co-workers, mailman, fellow church members,

trash collector, meter reader,

and even your enemies dentists. 

 (Can you guess where I have to go today?)

It's like a giant source of green til you're so sick of it, you never want to see one again...

and then just like that, the vine dies and it's done.

Well, while looking at all the zucchini rolling off the counter,

here's a superb recipe for Bread and Butter Pickles I found in the Blue Book of Preserving by Ball. 

I have to confess, I did alter it. 

The original recipe made much less.

  It only made 5 pints, and I never spend all the time to can something for 5 pints,

so I spent three hours figuring out how to increase the ingredients

so it would make a full canner.

(Yes, please know that 3 hours is an exaggeration...

a little).

 

If you want less, you can always cut the ingredients in half 

(or less

if you are better at math than I am.)

The book has lots of fantastic canning recipes in it...

but this one is a winner!

Zucchini Bread and Butter Pickles 

(Makes 7 quarts)

40 small zucchini (sliced)

20 small onions, sliced

5 green peppers, seeded and diced

3/4 cup canning salt

5 cup sugar

5 Tbs. mustard seed

2 1/2 Tbs. dry mustard

2 1/2 tsp. tumeric

2 1/2 tsp. celery seed

2 1/2 tsp. peppercorns

8 cup vinegar

Combine the first three ingredients in a large bowl or two.  Sprinkle salt over vegetables; stir.  Cover with ice.  Let stand 1 1/2 hours.  Drain and rinse.   Combine remaining ingredients in a large pot.  Bring to boil and ad vegetables.  Return to boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes.  Pack hot vegetables into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace.  Remove air bubbles.  Adjust two piece caps.  Process 10 minutes in a boiling water canner.

 My wall of food is at it's low point right now.

But hopefully not for long!

Now I need to go brush my teeth,

for the tenth time.

Linking up to these great places: