Crabapples!

[mrcharly]

We planted a tree 18 months ago, didn't harvest any fruit last year. What a mistake and waste.

This year was a bumper harvest. MrsC decided she's going to make crab apple wine and we set to harvesting. 23lbs from one little tree!

I tried eating some, they are actually really sweet and juicy, I'd assumed they would be too tart.

They've all gone into the freezer now.

 

[nephilim]

I found that some crabapples are brilliant tasting, but make horrible preserves, and some horrible tasting ones make amazing preserves.

I like to boil them down to a pulp in a rosehip syrup and water mix, then put through a muslin or jelly cloth, and then freeze it once its through. Scrape it up every so often with a fork whilst its freezing, and its a lovely sorbet. If I don't freeze it, then it becomes like an apple sauce, and is VERY tasty with pork belly.

 

[Robson Valley]

We have quite an assortment of table cherry varieties in BC.
However, the best for preserves of any kind and pies is what we call a "sour cherry".
Fresh and ripe, they are certainly all of that! Pucker-power off the tree.

Along my street alone are many "bush cherries", not really single stem trees in that sense.
If you can get to them before the birds do, wonderful preserves.

 

[Janne]

Try mixing crab apples with normal apples when you make apple preserves. More interesting flavour!