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I love apple cider in the fall, and you’d never guess how easy it is to make your own apple cider. Juicing whole apples to make raw apple juice or fresh apple cider is super easy and so much better than what you buy at the grocery stores! It is so good you don’t even need added sugar. Drink it cold or brew hot cider with some cinnamon for a warm treat.

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Ingredients needed for apple cider

Apples
If using a Blender you might need water

You can use as few or as many apples as you want. It’s all about how much homemade apple juice you’re trying to make. Keep in mind that this is fresh apple juice that doesn’t have any preservatives so it won’t have a long shelf life. You will likely want to make it in small batches.

Juicing Apples for Cider Video

I'll be using a juicer but you could easily do this same process with a blender.

Here are the instructions to make apple juice

The easiest way to make fresh juice is with a juicer, but another great option is to use a blender. I’ll be sharing the differences with you along the way.

I'm using fresh apples from my apple tree, and you can use any apple you like.

I’m using fresh apples from my apple tree. This is a great way to use up an abundance of apples. You can use any variety of apples to make your own apple juice. Different varieties will give you different flavors so you can experiment to determine which kind of apples you like best.

With an electric juicer, you can stick the whole apple inside if you want, it just needs to be small enough to drop inside. I like to at least cut them in half to prevent them from sticking.

If you are using a blender you’ll probably want to remove the core from the center and perhaps the peel. I like to use an apple peeler/corer/slicer for this process before sticking the apples in the blender.

I place a large 8 cup measuring cup in front of my juicer and then cover the top of the juicer spout with some tinfoil.

I place a large 8 cup measuring cup in front of my juicer (you could also use a large bowl) and then cover the top of the juicer spout with some tinfoil. Yes, I had a mishap the first time I tried the juicer, and juice shot out the bowl and went everywhere.

Place some apples in the juicer, place the lid on the top, turn the juicer on, and press lightly on the lid. The apples are pulled apart super fast, and the juice dispenses. Turn the juicer off, wait until it stops spinning, and then repeat the process until you have all of the juice you want.

If you’re using a blender, simply place your peeled and cored apples in your blender and turn it on. You might want to add a little water to help with the process of blending.

It separates them out and then discards the rest in a basket on the back side of the juicer that you can empty out.

A juicer shreds the apple discards what you don’t want to drink, and just allows the juice to go through. It separates the coarse particles of pulp and apple seeds into a basket on the back side of the juicer that you can empty.

Here’s a glance at what comes out of the juicer. It is unfiltered apple juice or apple cider. I place this in a pitcher and keep cold in the refrigerator. You can drink it as is or filter it.

The process is the same with a blender.

If you want to filter it more, place a strainer over your glass, and pour the juice through it.

The filtration process is easy, just place a fine mesh strainer over your glass, and pour the juice through it. The strainer will catch the larger parts and let the juice go through. You can discard what is in the strainer. This still lets some of the apple get through so some might rather use cheese cloth or muslin to make it even clearer.

Here’s a look at it after being strained. You can drink it cold or warm. We like to brew it with some cinnamon sticks and make homemade apple cider. You can find that recipe at Hot Apple Cider Recipe. You can add any spice you like – nutmeg, whole cloves, etc. (We have also been known to add a little alcohol like Fireball)

You can cook the cider in a slow cooker, large pot or we like to cook it in an urn.

Feel free to make adjustments to your taste by adding brown sugar or white sugar if you need it to be sweeter, and be careful not to add too much sugar. For this reason, many people like to use sweet apples (honeycrisp, pink lady, Fuji apples etc) instead of tart apples like crab apples or granny smith apples. You can also try to sweeten your apple cider juice with orange juice for a more natural sweetener. You can also adjust the taste with spices.