Apple Pie Lightning

So to be honest I don't know if this counts because the challenge said “food” though there are apples in the recipe :-/ so if moonshine doesn't count, let us consider this a “boozy apples recipe.” ;)

However let me start this off with a spoiler alert, despite the title this is NOT moonshine, as in not made in a still. It's cooked right on top of a stove top. Looking at the bright side this gives you all the benefits of liquid lightning aka moonshine without as much hassle, and have no fear this will not melt your esophagus on the way down! I would consider this a “sugar shine.”

Now for the backstory, I have been making this recipe for a number of years aside from several others such as: peach pie, cherry pie, blueberry pancake, strawberry rhubarb, even lemonade. Basically if it's a pie I can make it lol.

So I make this year round for ahem personal use, and of course the random orders I get here and there, but really the prime time is summer time. Every summer my family does a huge camp out called “Katie's Camp out.” The thing that really makes this prime time is that I have an enormous family. To borrow from the Will Ferrell movie Step Brothers, this time of year is my effing “Catalina Wine Mixer,”but instead it's the umm “Katie's Camp out Moonshine mixer..” Not quite as catchy but you get the idea. Lol

The camp out is truly an extravagant time, where day drinking and breakfast beers is never frowned upon. Classics such as Sweet Caroline are billowed over the campfires to the smell of s'mores, and fire made pizzas.

With the darkness also comes my former Buddy Holly impersonator uncle Ryan. He shreds the guitar with the best of them, aside from Buddy Holly he personally plays covers of ‘Don't Fear the Reaper,’ and the national anthem a la Jimi Hendrix. We even have an Elvis impersonator! Aside from the morning beers you will be awoken by the sweet smokey allure of bacon, eggs, and who knows what else to help that likely hangover.

There's the ever present euchre games where friends and family bonds are put to the test.

Then there are the occasional beer pong tournaments where yours truly and the wagon master herself Katie run rampant; relentlessly winning game after game, and destroying dreams. (SUCK IT TROY.)

Ahem, now anyways I am sharing with you my personal recipe that has been passed down the Flynn family generation to generation, going back to when “Wild” Will Hickock Flynn immigrated from the motherland of Ireland to the US in 1898 and started a shining recipe that was by the law legal at the time. Here's to you Hickock, whatever that means!

Okay, so I made all of that up, however this is a personal recipe and when I say personal, I mean that I got it off Pinterest. HOWEVER I have taken some personal liberties with the OG recipe to where I have indeed made it my own…

Now for the ingredients:

A 750 milliliter bottle of 190 -proof of Everclear or high proof vodka if that's all you can get.

Now this equates to basically three cups of Everclear, which I have taken the liberty to add up to 4 cups.

1 cup of Captain Morgan (however 2-3 cups of capt tastes pretty good too)

1 gallon of apple cider

1 quart apple juice

3 cups brown sugar

1 cups white sugar

5-10 cinnamon sticks ( I lean toward 5 because the cinnamon can be strong)

1 cup of whipped cream vodka (optional, but preferred)

A large stock pot

At Least 6-8 mason jars (quart sized)

2 sweeter apples sliced (fuji, honeycrisp)

This recipe comes together so easy a caveman can do it. (No offense to any cavemen out there.)

Simply combine the cinnamon sticks, apple cider, and apple juice in the large pot. I also will slice one of the apples into thin slices and add that to the pot.

Now immediately as the apple orgy starts to boil, stir in the sugars and continue to stir that bad boy for at least 5 minutes until all the sugar is dissolved.

After the stirring, at this point I usually bring the heat down to a simmer, and let it simmer on low heat for 10 minutes stirring it occasionally, before cutting off the heat entirely.

Allow it to cool for at least a few hours or overnight, for if you add the alchy too soon the higher temp will evaporate some of the alcohol content which if you do that you're gonna have a bad time.

Once its cooled down to room temp, stir in the Everclear, rum, and whipped cream vodka.

At this point you are ready and well technically done and can enjoy the appley goodness of the homemade moonshine BUT, it is better to go ahead and put them in the mason jars to let the flavors make love for at least a week. For that part I prefer to use a funnel of some kind to put the shine into the jars.

I will leave at least a few CM of space to put two slices of the apple in there as well as a cinnamon stick halved into one stick per jar.

Going to the prior point as the apple pie moonshine ages, the sinnamon (yes I meant to put SIN) and sugar blends out the alcohol taste to an almost undetectable level. So be warned.

Now go, go with my blessing and enjoy this foolproof recipe. Not sure what to give someone for Christmas, make this moonshine, need a to get someone a birthday gift, make this moonshine, want to reenact your great, great, Tennessee mountaineer grandpas moonshine makin' days, well this is pretty close for that too.

However be careful this recipe makes a very smooth drink that tastes like liquid apple pie that can kick you in the peppers if you’re not careful.

Again you have been warned now go with god, and as my real grandfather Willam Flynn would say :

“May your glass be ever full.

May the roof over your head be always strong.

And may you be in heaven

half an hour before the devil knows you're dead!”