Grape Juice

If you paid any attention to yesterday's picture, you know I have a ton of grapes. So what to do with them? I started with grape juice.

After searching the internet, I decided on a recipe from Simply Recipes. (See below for the link to the full recipe.) The site has beautiful pictures, yummy recipes, but long-winded directions.

Here is my simple description of what I did.

The first and longest step is to wash and de-stem the grapes. I'm talking hours here. As I de-stemmed, I put the grapes in a colander. When it was full, I gave them a rinse and put them into my biggest pot. I then used a potato masher to mash the grapes. I repeated this process until all the grapes were mashed and in the pot.

The second step is to slowly heat the grapes and juice until it simmers. Let simmer for 10 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking. Mash 1/2 way through simmer to get any grapes that have been hiding.

Next, use some sort of strainer to separate skin & seeds from the juice. I started out using my regular colander lined with coffee filters. After a few minutes I realized the seeds were too big to go through the holes in the colander, so I removed the filters. I let that sit for a while, going back occasionally to stir & mash with a ladle.

I skipped the 2nd straining and put the juice straight into a pitcher in the fridge. There is a bit of sediment on the bottom, but I don't mind it. If the girls don't like the way it looks, I can strain it at a later time. The juice is soooo yummy and sweet! I can't wait for them to try it.

I am not sure exactly how many pounds of grapes I used. I would guess about 10 lbs. I ended up with the amount shown, which is in a 2.26 quart pitcher. It was a lot of work, but I am glad I tried it. The yummy, organic juice is totally worth it.

http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/000107making_grape_juice.php