Christmas Out of Cranberries

Christmas 2024

Of all the lovely things we did at Christmas, none did I take more pictures of than my cranberry run. 

I bought about 6 pounds of Cranberries at Christmas time while on my break from teaching. Lovely, ripe, red cranberries. I had such a good time. And, I made juice. Delicious, if you like sour, cranberry juice.

The last time I had some, it was bubbly-so I drank that one because a bubby canning jar, while not a problem at that point, would have become a problem. A canning jar that has lost its seal is usually not edible past a day. But, fortunately, I caught it within three days, so it was just beginning to ferment at that point. That is why I drank it!

Fortunately, it had not spoiled yet so I could drink it…but none of the other ones came of bubbly to my relief!

Honestly, I did an incredible amount of “work” aka, side-hustling during the two weeks I was off. I ordered an actual TON of soil for my spring projects. I also bought pots and bulbs galore! 

And, I made crab apple cider vinegar. The initial mix is below. 

Honestly, one of the best parts of being a teacher is the time you get to spend with your family on breaks. It is like riding a bull in the arena, but it is also a great way if you are like me and have highs and lows. I can push very hard for a while, but then I drop over for a while to take a nap. These crabapples were picked with my children to help and it was quite fun!

Below are more pictures of making a food using crab apples, this time, to make crab apple jelly. One thing I have found with crab apple jelly is that the pectin from the apples is very sensitive to heat and can easily be destroyed. Less heat is better.

If you are interested in getting some of this jelly, it has half the amount of sugar of normal jelly as well as stevia in it.

It is Crabapple, Cinnamon Stick and Cranberry Jelly. During the process of making crab apple jelly, not only did I make cranberry juice, but also dried cranberry fruit rolls from the leftovers of the cranberries once I had stored the juice and used some in the jelly.