What can I do with a mound of apple peels?

[chloe103]

I went to a pick-your-own orchard this weekend, and came back with a large bagful of apples which are about to get turned into applesauce, and canned. (Yip!) I'll be left with a substantial quantity of apple peel, and would hate to see it go to waste. Are there any recipes that call for apple peels but not apples? Has anyone tried their hand at apple peel jelly?

[Veggo]

Feed the deer.

[bushwickgirl]

I had some apple peels last week that were so tasty I ate them myself.

[Veggo]

Yes, deer. Anything you say, deer. ;)

[sarahkozak]

Here is an article that gives 5 good uses for apple skins. Hope you enjoy it! http://tinyurl.com/3mt2q3q

[bushwickgirl]

Apple peels can be turned into a "mother" for vinegar, as TNExplorer suggested in post #2 upthread. Here's a little more info:

http://thehealthyeatingsite.com/apple...

I realize that the OP's apple peels are long gone, but it's apple season again; this thread has become relevant once more.

[Hank Hanover]

Ferment it into apple wine then distill it into applejack.

[limoen]

If you're a jam-making type, you can make apple pectin from them and use that. Just put 'apple peel pectin' into Google for a guide. You can use the cores for pectin too, apparently

[lynnlato]

If you have a dehydrator (or can borrow one) I would toss them in cinnamon and dehydrate them. They would make great chips to snack on. No sugar needed.

[nikonrob2020]

Ok, so Ive never liked throwing anything away that is useful & since the apple peel has the most nutrients, & I didn't see any ideas in here that I felt like doing today, I made Salsa. Yep!, I made apple peel salsa. My Hot peppers did great this year & my tomatos didn't, so I used about equal parts apple peel & tomato. & then made the salsa the same way I normally do. Not only did it help be a filler & give more salsa, it also gave it a pleasent sweet taste. Oh, by the way, I cook my salsa. & since there was stringy peelings, I ran it thru the blender, which I never do, so it isn't chunky like my salsa usually is. All in all, I'm going to proclain it as a success!!!

[Jo Ellen]

just last week I made fresh applesauce and I placed the peels on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, sprinkled them with a mixture of sugar and cinnamon, baked them as low as my oven would go for a couple hours. I left them curly and just mixed them aroung half way thru. They came out looking like curly skinny fries and taste wonderful. Great snack and I am thinking of attaching small bags of them to the jars of applesauce as gifts.

[enbell]

Add some to garnish a green salad. Add to oatmeal, grits or cream of wheat. Add to quesadillas and grilled cheese sandwiches. Chop and add to jicama or carrots for a slaw.

[Sandra Ireland]

I never waste apple peels. I wash/cleanse all apples thoughly, and ONLY core the apples. The peelings help hold the apples together, provide additional flavour and a dash of colour, and everyone raves about the taste, texture and appearance.
Of course, my Grandmother would make apple peeling jelly, but why waste the peelings? We all need the fiber. Since including the apple peels, I've had no complaints about my apple pies OR apple crisp. (I don't peel nectarines, plums, tomatoes and I only de-fuzz peaches and apricots.)

[zzDan]

This is guy type of cooking but I don't even core them or cut them up
Just simmer 3 apples in as little water as you can get away with
Make sure you added some salt and few raisins, cinnamon maybe
Cook maybe 20 minutes and let the pot cool for ten more
Then serve apples with a little granola or nuts sprinkled on top

[normalheightsfoodie]

COMPOST

[RosemaryHoney]

Yes! With all those apple peels, it's a great time to start a worm compost. You can do it right in your kitchen. It sounds insane, I know, but look into it.

[normalheightsfoodie]

I in fact have a worm composter for my garden, it produces compost and helps us to keep useful things out of the landfill. We compost all of our fruit and vegi waste.

[chloe103]

Hooray composters!

I'm actually lucky enough to live in a city that mandates composting, and picks it up for you (I don't have a yard, so I'd have nowhere to put it anyway), so worst comes to worst I'll definitely be putting it in my bin. I'm just hoping to find a culinary use and save myself from resorting to that.

[AlizaEss]

Of course, you could always boil them for apple pectin first, then add them to your compost after that! Double duty.

[Emme]

Cut the peels into strips, then coat in cinnamon sugar, and either bake or fry.... make a great fiber packed snack or topping to ice cream or fro yo or in oatmeal or yogurt.... Or, if your peels are large, as in one big strip from a single apple, you could batter them in a flour, milk, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla batter then fry.

I'd chop them and add to pancake or waffle batter... I love the peels myself, so the taste in there would be great to me.

[geminigirl]

as someone else mentioned, you don't need to peel for applesauce. Just wash apples, cut and quarter and cook untill they are mush. Put through a foley food mill and season to your liking. I usually just freeze, but last year I tried it with canning and it worked great as well. It has a beautiful brown hue, which is how I grew up eating applesauce, can't stand that yellow stuff they sell in the stores:)

[chloe103]

Yes, I definitely am in favour of keeping peels in applesauce too. Unfortunately, I am without a food mill right now, and blending will produce a much smoother consistency than I really want.

[lgss]

For future reference, I've made raw applesauce (using a Champion Juicer) without peeling the apples, just core them. Sometimes I add strawberries or blueberries, etc.

[nemo]

Apples have a lot of pectin, so I'm glad Todao mentioned jelly. If you didn't want to make it with cinnamon and apple pie spices, try herbs, like thyme, sage, or rosemary to go with roasted meats and sandwiches.

[chowmel]

I've made jelly from the cores and peels. Put them in a pot with some water - not too much. Simmer about 1/2 hour then sit covered of heat for another 1/2 hour. Strain the juice and use in your recipe. Its also useful to use with other fruits for mixed jellies since it is a high pectin fruit.

[NYCkaren]

Thanks for this tip. I may try it someday. I usually eat some of the apple peels, give some to the dog and throw the rest away.

[todao]

Apple wine? Boil them down and make a syrup? Leave them in the yard for the deer?
Or:
http://www.recipelink.com/mf/20/7379
http://www.pickyourown.org/applejelly...

[TNExplorer]

You can make an apple fruit vinegar by putting the peels in a clean jar and adding spring or well water -- no chlorinated water. Cover the mouth of the jar with cheesecloth -- or I've used those cloth covers for squeezing lemons. Store at about 65-70 degress away from sunlight. The mix will start fermenting a 3-4 days; you'll see little bubbles at the top. After a week or so, remove the peels, decant the vinegar into a new bottle. It will continue to age as you use it. Putting it the refrigerator will almost stop the fermentation.

[momskitchen]

I always understood that you need....you need a vinegar mother to do that. Fermented apples are not vinegar....you are making alcohol. Then, you can add vinegar mother to your fermentation to make vinegar. Your thoughts?

[sam21479]

Not something to eat, but I sometimes put the peels in a pot of water, add some cinnamon, and simmer on the stove, refilling water as needed for a nice scent in the air.

[mamachef]

Nice idea, sam. Or, you could boil them in hotdog water and throw it away. :)