How To Make Homemade Apple Juice
Fresh, homemade apple juice is delicious - and much easier to make than you might think!
If you've got a garden full of apple trees, a glut of apples from the allotment or simply fancy a family adventure with a delicious reward at the end, why not have a go at making your very own apple juice?
There’s something rather special about making food and drink from scratch, especially when little hands have helped along the way. And nothing quite compares to the taste of juice made from fresh, home-grown apples. So gather your little explorers, grab a basket and get ready for an apple-picking adventure! The finished juice is delicious served chilled at home, poured into bottles for a family picnic or taken along on a woodland walk.
Photo Credit: Alexander Mils on Unsplash
First things first: go apple picking!
The best part of this recipe might just be collecting the ingredients. Head out into the garden and see how many apples your little helpers can find. Give everyone a basket or bucket and challenge them to pick as many as they can carry! If you don't have an apple tree, don't worry. Visit a local farm shop or farmers' market, or see whether there are any suitable apple trees nearby where you can pick fallen fruit with permission.
Home-grown apples are particularly delicious, but don't worry about finding perfectly shiny supermarket specimens. A few bumps and wonky shapes are absolutely fine — you're going to turn them into juice anyway! To make around one litre of juice, you'll need approximately 30–40 apples, depending on their size and juiciness. That's a lot of apples, so little legs may need a wheelbarrow!
What you'll need
Ingredients
- 30–40 apples
- 2 lemons
Equipment
- A sharp knife
- Apple peeler
- Magimix or another suitable food processor
- Chinois strainer
- Wooden spoon
- A clean bottle for your finished juice — we love Kilner-style bottles
You'll also need plenty of willing helpers!
Let's make some juice!
1. Pick, pick, pick!
Start by collecting lots and lots and lots of apples. This is a brilliant opportunity to get children outdoors and involved in where their food comes from. Talk about the different varieties you find. Are some red, green or yellow? Which ones are biggest? Which ones smell sweetest? You could even make a little game of it - can you find five tiny apples? Can you find one bigger than your hand? Can you fill the basket before the grown-up does? Just make sure any foraging is done safely and with permission, and avoid fruit growing alongside busy roads or areas where it may have been treated with chemicals.
2. Wash, peel and core
Before you begin preparing the apples, give them a good wash. The peeling and coring is best left to an adult, or older children under close supervision, as you'll be working with sharp equipment. Cut the apples into manageable pieces and remove the cores. Don't worry about making everything look perfect. You're making juice, not entering an apple-carving competition!
3. Keep those apples fresh
Apples have a tendency to turn brown once they're cut. Luckily, there's a wonderfully simple solution. Squeeze over some fresh lemon juice. Not only does this help slow down the browning, but the lemon adds a lovely little zing to your finished juice. You could let the children help squeeze the lemons — just be prepared for a few stray pips!
4. Blend, blend, blend!
Now it's time for the food processor. Place your prepared apple pieces inside and blend for around two minutes. Stop and push the apple mixture down into the processor, then blend again. Repeat this a couple more times, or until the apples have been thoroughly blended. You want to blend for around six minutes in total, although the exact time will depend on your food processor. Unlike soft fruits, apples need a little encouragement to release all that lovely juice, so don't be afraid to really work the mixture. This is definitely one for the grown-ups, particularly if your food processor needs a firm push.
5. Strain the juice
Now comes the satisfying part! Place the blended apple mixture into a chinois strainer over a bowl or jug. Using a wooden spoon, press the apple pulp firmly against the strainer to squeeze out as much juice as possible. Keep pressing until you've extracted as much liquid as you can. And just look at that colour! You can almost taste the orchard.
6. Bottle it up
Pour your freshly made apple juice into a clean bottle or jug. We love using traditional glass Kilner-style bottles because they make homemade juice feel extra special. And that's it! Your homemade apple juice is ready to enjoy.
Sweeten or not?
We recommend tasting your juice before adding anything. Fresh apples are naturally sweet, so you may find that you don't need any additional sugar or sweetener at all. If you do want a little extra sweetness, you can add a small amount of natural sweetener such as honey or agave syrup. For children under one, avoid honey. But our advice? Try it au naturel first. You might be surprised by just how delicious freshly pressed apple juice can be.
Take it on an adventure
Once your juice is ready, why not pack a bottle into your picnic bag and head outside? Take it on a family walk, enjoy it after a morning of apple picking or pour it into cups at the end of a muddy garden adventure. There's something rather lovely about sitting beneath a tree, sipping juice made from apples you've picked yourselves. And if you've got enough apples left over, you could always turn your next batch into apple crumble, apple sauce or a delicious homemade cake.
From tree to bottle
We love recipes like this because they help children understand where food comes from. The apples didn't magically appear in a bottle at the supermarket. They grew on trees, were picked by little hands, washed, chopped and blended — and eventually became something delicious to drink. It's a simple lesson, but an important one. So grab your baskets, find some apples and get ready for a wonderfully fruity family adventure.
Pick. Press. Pour. Sip. And enjoy a taste of the great outdoors in every glass!
