To make 1 gallon of nectar, you’ll need:
– A 10 Quart Steam Juicer
– 10 Lbs of Dolgo Crabapples
– 2 Lbs Light Brown Sugar
– A few coffee filters
– A funnel
– A 1 gallon jug
– 1 Gallon Water
You’ll remove the stems from the crabapples and add them to the colander part of the steam juicer. Add 1 gallon to the bottom pot and start that on high heat. Set up the funnel on the 1 gallon jug with the coffee filter in the funnel. You’ll be swapping out the filter as needed. Place this stack under the juicer and let it drain into the jug. This will take quite a bit of time, so grab a seat and try your best to be patient. . . . . Much time later. . . . . The water in the bottom pot is starting to dry up and the jug is getting close to being full. You can feel free to call it good here. Drain whatever you can and then get some oven mitts on, because we’ll need to be pouring the contents of the jug into a 5 Quart pot. Add the 2 Lbs of light brown sugar into the pot with the crabapple nectar and bring to a boil for 5 minutes minimum. After it’s boiled for at least 5 minutes, pour it back into the 1 gallon jug and seal. Let this cool before serving.
There’s 2 ways of serving, diluting or heating. If you’re going to dilute it, I’ve found 50% water/7Up and 50% nectar works well. The heating route is great when it’s cold out, just pour a glass and microwave it for a minute.
Something to note: Dolgo Crabapple nectar and sauce darken over time. So after you’ve made it, don’t be concerned when it starts moving toward a darker shade of red. The coloring comes from the skin, and over the season it moves from a candy apple red toward a rich burgundy color.