You Don't Need A Fancy Juicer To Make Your Own Apple Juice

When it comes to apple juice, sometimes even the best store-bought products don't quite hit the spot. You want something cooler, something brighter, something sweet and tart, and as fresh as a daisy. But where on earth are you going to find a juice like that? Jamba has long since given up the pretense of being anything but human hummingbird nectar, and you're not always going to find a farmer's market at the ready. And juicers? Who are you, Jack LaLanne? Even if you had the counter space for a juicer, you're probably only going to use it a few times a year, realistically speaking. But worry not: There are easier ways to indulge in Princess Diana's passion for fruity drinks and make some fresh apple juice. One method utilizes a blender and some cheesecloth; the other just needs a freezer and your own two hands.

Here's how the blender method works. First, you core the apples (three apples per cup, or twelve per quart is roughly how many apples you'll need for juice) before chopping them up into pieces. Then, you toss those pieces in the blender with a little water and pulse until everything is nice and homogeneous. Now you have apple puree — and while you've possibly not had much use for apple puree since you were a baby, that changes with some cheesecloth. 

Load the apple puree inside some of the cloth, twist it up, and squeeze, squeeze, squeeze until you get all the juice you can out of the puree. Repeat until you've gone through all the puree, and there's your juice.

Now, maybe you don't have a blender or a juicer. Does that mean you have to subsist on Mott's for the rest of your days? Certainly not. (And anyway, you can probably graduate to apple cider if you get sick of juice.) Using just a freezer and your own hands, you can make fresh, crisp, delicious apple juice — provided you also have up to twelve hours. Don't worry, though — most of that time is just waiting for the apples to freeze and thaw.

First, place the apples in the freezer. Exactly which apples depends upon how you tart or sweet you want your juice, but you can't go wrong with Pink Lady or Red Delicious. Make sure they're cleaned of any dirt before freezing them. Then, eight hours later, take the apples out of the freezer and set them on the table or the counter to thaw completely — it'll take a few hours. 

Once they're totally defrosted, you can then squeeze the fruit using your hands into the receptacle of your choice. If that sounds like a heck of a workout, don't worry: these apples will be so soft you can juice them with ease. And if you want to switch things up, the technique also works just as well with pears.