Category: Autumn

Two years ago, I made Apple Chutney from the fresh apples I picked off my own apple tree.  My daughter loved it and just recently used the last can from that year.

This year, I modified the recipe slightly (see below):

Apple Chutney Recipe

2 quarts (64 ounces) apples (peeled, cored, chopped)
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 lbs. golden raisins
4 cups brown sugar, firmly packed
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
2 red bell peppers, finely chopped
1 clove of garlic, crushed
2 1/2 tablespoons mustard seed
2 tablespoons ginger
2 1/2 teaspoons ground allspice
1 teaspoon curry powder
2 teaspoons table salt
4 cups (32 ounces) white vinegar

In my stock pot, I poured in the vinegar and added the brown sugar.  I turned on the burner to a simmer setting.  I chopped up the vegetables and added them to the stock pot.  I crushed the garlic and grated the ginger and added that to the stock pot.  I stirred it up.  Then I started adding the spices.  I got to the last one (curry) and got carried away, adding an extra teaspoon (twice as much as the recipe called for) so I added a half teaspoon more of allspice to counterbalance.  I stirred it up again and got to work peeling, coring and chopping apples.

I picked out seven medium to large sized apples and washed them. Then I peeled, cored and chopped them. I added them to the stockpot and stirred it all up. Then I picked 4-5 of the small apples and washed them. Rinse, repeat.

Now I need to prep my brand new 16-quart pressure canner.  This required taking the seal out of the lid and washing the lid, pan and seal in hot soapy water.  It’s almost too big to fit in my sink!  Once I got it rinsed and dried, I returned the seal to the lid and poured in a couple of gallons of distilled water.  Then I turned the burner on medium-high to start the long process of heating up the pan and the water.  Finally, I placed the clean empty lidless jars in the water so they would gradually rise in temperature and become sanitized.  I started a smaller pan with a half-gallon of distilled water on medium-low heat and placed the lids and bands in it.

The canner can process a dozen of the Ball Quilted Crystal Jelly jars (half pint capacity), which is what I use to preserve the apple chutney. My daughter, for whom all this effort is expended, prefers that size to use when cooking for two.  I processed through most of the simmering apple chutney and sealed up the canner.  I cranked up my largest burner to its highest setting and set 20 minutes on the timer.

I had enough apple chutney after the first batch to fill four more half-pint jars. The canner has a roiling boil on for those last four lonely jars.

So the above recipe produces sixteen half-pint jars. Or 128 ounces. Or one gallon of chutney.