With both Melissa and Paul out of the house this week, the kids decided to throw a wild party in their absence. A wild apple sauce making party!
The weather had turned from rain to sunshine, so baskets and buckets and bowls were grabbed and the apple picking commenced!
The apple trees were so heavy this year, several branches had broken earlier in the summer. There were plenty of apples to go around!
Our good friends Rebekah and Aaron Schetky came over to help with the wild apple sauce party.
The boys got a bit distracted with swords and a game of fruit ninja started with the rotten apples!
This led to the boy’s bowl of apples being rather low…(the one that Laura is holding):
But don’t worry, the girls picked plenty!
Once all the apples were picked, it was time to wash them. The girls gathered around the sink and carefully washed each apple.
Once cleaned, everyone gathered around the table to start peeling, coring, and chopping. There was a small dispute over the music selection, but compromise was met and we listened to a mixture of Japanese techno and Taylor Swift.
But peeling apples takes a lot of concentration; you don’t want to cut yourself with that peeler! You can tell by these faces that they were concentrating hard!
When all the apples were peeled, the chopping continued and Laura put the big pot on the stove to heat up.
Water and lots and lots of sugar was added, then the apple stew was left to simmer over the heat (while Laura snuck off to play for the bird).
After a while of playing silly games (and a few dashes of cinnamon), the apple sauce was ready for eating!
Now there are several large containers of apple sauce in the fridge, and we can’t wait to enjoy them! There are still plenty of apples left on the trees as well, so maybe there will be pies in the future?
Here’s a poem that the newest member of the band, Quinn’s new bride Emily, wrote:
Soon the clouds will turn dark and gray,
but the sun is shining in the sky today.
Just a few more months and the snow will fall,
but for right now the birds still call.
They haven’t yet left their place of rest,
haven’t yet flown to a warmer nest.
So they’ll watch on as we laugh and play,
while we pick apples and sing all day.
Alaska String Band Blog 