APPLE FERMENTATION

Alcohol has been made for thousands of years in part by fermenting fruit, one of the most primitive alcohol-
producing methods. Apples take less time to ferment than grapes or other fruits. Some people ferment apples
to produce drinkable alcohol, while others may use the concoction for cooking or butter.

Wash out the beaker or flask used for fermentation.

Pour 50 mL of room-temperature apple juice in the container. Only use fully ripened apples instead of apple
juice. Skin the apples and grind them with a food processor or blender until they form a pulp. You will need 50
mL of the pulp to replace the apple juice.

Add at least five grains of dry yeast to the container.

Stretch the lips of a helium balloon over the flask opening, so that the balloon covers at least an inch of the
flask. The balloon must be a high-grade helium balloon for the process to work; a regular party balloon won't
suffice. Seal the lip of the balloon with a twist tie or rubber band.

Place the balloon-covered container in an undisturbed area that stays at or around 72 degrees Fahrenheit.

Monitor the balloon for four to seven days, after which it should have inflated slightly. The inflation represents
carbon dioxide leaving the juice, as a result of the fermentation process. Take the balloon off the flask and pour
the liquid through a sieve into an airtight jar; this filters, or racks, the pulp out of the liquid. Discard the pulp.
Seal the jar tightly and store for three months.

Open the jar after three months and check on the fermentation. The liquid should appear chalky or cloudy,
indicating the yeast is not fully fermented. Using a sieve, transfer, or rack, the liquid into a second jar. Reseal
the jar and store at room temperature for an additional three months.

Open the jar after the three months and filter the liquid through a sieve once more into where the liquid is
stored for drinking or other use. This liquid should be clear and free of sediment and yeast.

Drink, bottle or use the wine for cooking.

Tip

Keep the jar away from direct sunlight, which could affect the quality of the fermentation.

Warning

If the liquid remains cloudy and continues to contain sediment, it is not fermented. Alcohol that has not
fermented completely can explode the bottle. Repeat the racking process until fermentation is complete, then
bottle the liquid.

If using a cork, be sure to lay the bottle on its side to prevent the cork from shrinking.
Fermented Oranges
Ingredients:
• 3 lbs. of organic oranges

• ½ cup of salt

• 2-inch piece of ginger (optional)

Equipment:
• 1 Fermentools kit
• 2-quart wide-mouth jar

• Plate

• Metal ring for the wide-mouth jar

• Sharp paring knife

• Bowl for salt

Method:
Place one tablespoon of salt into the bottom of the Mason jar.

Wash oranges well. Cut off the blossom and stem end of each orange. Carefully slice each orange into
quarters without severing the join on the opposite end. This allows the oranges to open like a flower at the
join. Sprinkle one to two teaspoons of salt on the inside of each orange and place it in your jar. If using, peel
the ginger with the edge of a spoon. Slice the ginger very thinly with a sharp knife. Add the ginger to the jar,
interspersed among the oranges. Fill the jar to within two inches of the top with salted oranges.

Add two tablespoons of whey or liquid from a successful ferment. This will inoculate your ferment and ensure
that you start with the best lacto-bacteria to get a good orange ferment.

Top up the jar with filtered water to within two inches of the lid.

Place the Fermentools glass weight, fermentation lock and lid. Put the prepared jar on a plate to catch any
inadvertent overflow. Leave it to ferment for a week or two. Once the active bubbling has stopped, you’ll
notice that the orange skin looks a little less orange and a little paler.

Place the jar in the fridge for long-term storage. It will keep in the fridge up to a year and get better with age,
as the flavors meld.

Use them anywhere you would use fresh oranges.

Ways to use fermented oranges

While you can serve up preserved oranges in a pickle dish right out of the jar, here are two of my favorite ways
to serve salt-preserved oranges. They are especially good when blended with white balsamic vinegar, rather
than plain white vinegar or cider vinegar.
Fermented lemonade is a wonderfully refreshing beverage with the benefits of being fermented. This recipe
uses water kefir as a base. Making water kefir is pretty simple. See how to make water kefir if you have not
learned how yet. It only takes about five minutes of prep time and two days to ferment. Then you can use this
recipe to make your very own fermented lemonade!

You can flavor water kefir in many ways. Flavoring with lemon is quick and easy. Not to mention it is super
tasty! The kids will fall in love with this fermented lemonade because of the great flavor, but also because it is
a little carbonated.

Below there is a recipe to make a whole pitcher or just a glass. This is great if you want to try it before making
a big batch of it. You could also make a big batch for your ferment-loving friends!

The Tools You Need to Make Fermented Lemonade:

• A set of Fermentools. Airlock systems are easy to use, and keep a healthy environment for your fermented
beverages.
• Wide-mouth Mason jars; I prefer using a gallon to a half-gallon size, but if you are only making a small glass
use a quart jar.

• Himalayan salt – Don’t use just any salt. This salt is perfect for fermenting.

How to Make Fermented Lemonade – One Glass

Ingredients:
• 1 ½ cups water kefir soda

• ½ lemon

• 1 Tbsp sugar

Directions:
1. Place water kefir soda in preferred glass for drinking. Make sure you have removed the grains from the
liquid. We only want the liquid.

2. Next, squeeze half a lemon in your glass.

3. Add the sugar, and stir really well.

4. Refrigerate until cold and then drink it up!

5. Add slices of lemon for garnish!

How to Make Fermented Lemonade – 1/2 Gallon Pitcher

Ingredients:
• 7 ½ cups water kefir soda

• 2 ½ lemons

• 1 cup sugar, or as much or as little as you desire

Directions:
1. Place water kefir soda in a pitcher, or a beverage dispenser.

2. Next, squeeze the lemons into the pitcher/dispenser.

3. Add the sugar, and stir really well.

4. Refrigerate, until cold and serve.

 HOW TO MAKE FERMENTED MANGO
SODA
Ingredients
 2 quarts filtered water
 4-5 organic mangoes, peeled and pitted
 3/4 cup organic sugar (find organic sugar here)
 1/2 cup ginger bug, whey or water kefir
Note: You could add a little more or less sugar depending on how sweet you want
it. 3/4 cup was perfect for me. It was sweet but not too sweet. Also, know that due to
the fermentation process whereby the bacteria feed on the sugars, the soda will
become less sweet over time.

Directions
1. Wash, peel and remove the pit from the mangoes.
Peeling mangoes can be a little tedious and messy. My dull vegetable peeler was
making a mess of things so I tried a cheese slicer instead…

Worked like a charm! I also found a mango peeler on Amazon which also slices it and
removes the pit. They make something for everything these days, don’t they? I’ve
never used it but if you use a lot of mangoes it may come in handy.
2. Blend mango in blender or food processor until smooth…
That’s my trusty Nutribullet. This is seriously one of the most useful kitchen appliances I
own. The only thing I use more is my coffee maker. If you’re in the market for a new
blender don’t waste your money on some cheap piece of junk from Wal-mart that will
break in a year. This little thing is ridiculously powerful and will pulverize almost
anything in a matter of seconds. It can even mill grains.
It’s also saves a lot of time as it’s easy to clean and comes with attachable and portable
cups for making on-the-go smoothies. Seriously, get one of these powerful little things
and you’ll thank me!
3. Add mango, water and sugar to a pot, bring to a boil, reduce heat immediately
to a simmer, stir and simmer for about 10-15 minutes.
Turn off heat and let cool to room temperature.
4. Strain the mango juice with a cheese cloth laid over a strainer or use a fine
mesh strainer…
Now you could skip this step. If you do know that your soda will have some pulp in
it. This is not a big deal and it’s can’t hurt you but it will be a bit cloudy and gloopy.
5. Transfer the mango juice to a large ball container or some sort of glass jar and
add your starter culture.
I highly recommend using a ginger bug because I think that gives the best flavor. If
you’re new to making a ginger bug, my friends over at Oh Lardy! have a great tutorial
for how to make a ginger bug. Otherwise, you can use whey or water kefir.
6. Let the mango juice sit for about 24-48 hours or until you see visible signs of
bubbling.
Bubbling is a sign that the bacteria are actively fermenting the sugars and giving off
carbon dioxide. The rate of fermentation is faster in warmer weather so if it’s the middle
of summer this might only take a day.

6. Transfer to soda bottles using a funnel or lipped measuring cup.

7. Let the mango soda sit at room temperature until the bottles become
carbonated.
Make sure to check the bottles EVERY DAY, especially in summer as the pressure from
the carbon dioxide can build rapidly. Because it is mid-August as I write this and we’re
in the middle of a heat wave here in western MA, my mango soda was ready in less
than a day.

Open the bottles carefully to let some of the gasses escape. Do this over the sink as
sometimes you’ll get a bubbling over. Once it’s carbonated, transfer the bottles to the
refrigerator where the fermentation will dramatically slow down.
8. Enjoy with a squeeze of lime and/or mint!