2021 Crabapple Harvest

Photo shows some of my crabapple harvest from 2021.  The tree originally came from a 25 count bundle of row run ornamental crabapple seedlings I purchased from a county soil and water conservation district back in the early 1990s.  I also had a wonderful yellow crab that came from the same bundle, flavor reminded me of pineapple.  Unfortunately I lost that one when a tree fell on it.  These ungrafted trees proved to me beyond a doubt that a person can get decent edible apple strains from seed.

Photo shows four quart jars of the pure crabapple juice I made using my steam juicer.

How do you use pure crabapple juice? In a recipe, as a drink, to make jam?

T Blankinship wrote:How do you use pure crabapple juice? In a recipe, as a drink, to make jam?

I use it as a breakfast juice, it is good stuff.  I process, can, and drink a lot of fruit and berry juices because I have a steam juicer and the freezer is full of meat so no space for frozen berries.  I also like to mix the various juices with vodka, nothing wrong with a little "medicine" on occasion.  Gotta find some use for all the harvests.  

I do not like orange juice because the stuff sold in stores is so bad, truly an insult to oranges.

Tom Knippel wrote:
I also like to mix the various juices with vodka, nothing wrong with a little "medicine" on occasion.  Gotta find some use for the all harvests.  

Yes! I take a little "medicine" on occasion.  Cool idea.

I have an ornamental crabapple and a "real" crabapple, as well as several apple trees.

Crabapple makes fine apple jelly, either by itself or mixed with regular apples. It can also be used to make your own pectin, though I haven't done that.

Even ornamental crabapple fruits, which are tiny, can make jelly, though I use them as an extender when I don't have quite enough apples, rather than by themselves.

Regular size crabapple fruits, about the size of your thumb, will make fine jelly on their own.

I wouldn't use crabapple for jam or apple butter. There is too much core relative to the juicy, fruity part. Save them for jelly.