Turn fresh pears into pear cider.
Cider is made from fermenting apples to obtain a sweet, natural beverage, most often enjoyed warm in the cool, autumn months. Although apples are usually used, pears are another option for cider making. Making traditional fermented pear cider takes months. However, if you want pear cider at home in little time, you can approximate the taste of fermented cider in a few hours. Make it fresher by pressing your own pears.
Instructions
1. Collect and peel the pears using a paring knife or vegetable peeler. To make one gallon of juice, you need 5 lbs of pears.
2. Core and chop the pears into one-inch cubes. Discard the core. Use either a knife or an apple slicer.
3. Place a large piece of muslin into a five-gallon plastic bucket. The muslin should cover the bottom and the sides of the bucket. Add the cut up pears to the bucket, on top of the muslin.
4. Press and crush the pears into the muslin using a clean, untreated piece of 2-by-4 lumber. Once the pears are fully crushed, gather the four corners of the muslin around an 18-inch long broom handle or dowel rod. Tie the corners together. Holding the muslin in one hand and the handle in the other, twist the fabric and handle in opposite directions. This will squeeze the last of the juice out of the pears and into the bucket.
5. Place one gallon of pear juice into a large stockpot. Add the dark brown sugar, whole cloves, whole peppercorns, cinnamon sticks, salt, nutmeg and whole allspice berries to the pear juice. Stir to combine.
6. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat.
7. Cut an orange into thin slices across the width of the orange. Drop the oranges into the simmering mixture.
8. Remove the mixture from the heat and leave it to soak for a minimum of 20 minutes.
9. Serve the completed cider either warm or chilled. Store leftover cider in a sealed container.
Tags: pears into, pear cider, bucket muslin, pear juice
