—Lancaster Farming, Saturday. Oct. 30, .1976 42 v< ' -.//v /X ~ - w£. Steam rises from seven kettles full of applebutter as . members of the Mt Nebo United Methodist Church and members of the community of Delta, Pa. gather for their annual applebutter making day. The process of By JOANNE SPAHR DELTA, Pa. - The winds whip over the hills, flapping the loose ends of worker's neck scarves in the onrush, and it’s the kind of cold, brittle-feeling day that makes you seek out a protected spot in the sun to lie warming like a partially hibernating turtle. And, yet, there is something in the smell and feel of the October day that is envigorating - No matter how enthusiastic you are about making applebutter, the time does come when your enthusiasm isn’t enough to keep you awake, especially if you’ve gotten up at 2 o'clock in the morning to join in the festivities. Applebutter making: ' ♦ L ' return to the eld times something that makes you feel a surge of life. Beside a quaint, picture post card church roam about 40 people of all ages, chatting and laughing and taking turns at manning the eight foot antique, or at least antique-looking, wooden stirrers which are employed in keeping the ingredients in the 20-gallon copper kettles from sticking to the bottom and burning. From the open wood fires beneath the kettles, smoke wafts forth, and steam rises from the mixture as it bubbles, boiling away all the water. The community of Delta has assembled for its annual apple-butter making day. Actually, tb* youth group and other meuioers of the Mt. Nebo United Methodist Church have gathered to make applebutter, but after a 50 year tradition in the neighborhood, it can no longer be termed a strictly church function. Now everyone and anyone comes out to help. And, it would be hard to keep people away, for there’s an almost inex plainable feeling of good will that comes from taking part in this ritual. “It takes me back to the old times, explains Mrs. Mary Smith, Cardiff, Md., who stands slowly stirring the third in a line of seven copper pots of applebutter. “Only recently have I become interested in the things my mother and grandmother used to do,” she continues, adding that she now makes jams, jellies, and does pickles. She also has gotten so interested in applebutter making that she went to a sale recently and pur chased her own copper pot. “There was an antique dealer bidding against me,” she explains, so she feels fortunate that she got the kettle for the price she did. On the average, these kettles sell for anywhere from $l5O to $2OO. The Mt. Nebo Church making the applebutter takes several days to complete with the cooking process, alone, taking approximately 12 hours. I 4 has about three or four of its own and the rest of the kettles are borrowed for this special day. Actually, there’s quite a procedure that goes into this process. This year’s “cook out” began about two weeks prior to the designated ap plebutter making day. At that time, about 16 youth members from the church went to a nearby orchard and picked the necessary 56 bushels for the seven kettles of apples. Theh, the day before the applebutter was to be made, another group of church youth got together from 5 a.m. to 3 p.m. and peeled, cored, and slices every single apple for the next day’s event. The next step was to prepare the kettles to be cooked in. This came the day the applebutter was to be made - only at about 2 or 3 o’clock in the morning. Since they are made from copper, the kettles take a special solution to clean and shine them up from year to year. “It takes a hot mixture of salt, vinegar, and wood ashes,” states Kenneth Ruff, Delta, who went out in the wee hours of the morning to help set up everything. “This makes the copper real shiny,” he adds. Ruff also explained that the 20 gallon copper kettles had basically only one purpose - to make applebutter. It is important that only copper be used for applebutter beacuse other metals will cause the mix ture to stick. ' h f After the kettles were shined up, the fires had to be started. “Oh, you have to have an open fire,” jokes Leona Smith, Delta. But, even though she is joking, it is evident that the applebutter just wouldn’t be as good without it, and the feel of being in touch with an age gone by wouldn’t be as genuine. By the time all these youth group demonstrates how the applebutter is packaged after it is made. Everyone who has put in an order brings his or her own jars and has them filled to take home. -*■ i * J-i*' , procedures are completed, it may be as late as 3 a.m. and by then it’s time to get the apples cooldng. For every eight bushels of apples that go into each kettle, 10 gallons of water must be added. And, from the start, the apples must'be stirred constantly, or else they will stick. “There are several ways to stir,” explains Dale [Continued on Page 43] (^
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