Sweet apples, cinnamon, cloves, ginger and cabbage are combined to create my Apple Spice Sauerkraut. Get your favorite fall flavors in a healing probiotic rich food.
I’ve been itching to create a new unique sauerkraut recipe. It’s kind of my specialty, like my Pineapple Turmeric Sauerkraut or Jalapeño Cilantro Sauerkraut. I love to break out of the classic recipes seen everywhere to create something different.
This sauerkraut combines seasonal fall flavors in an unconventional way. It’s not an apple spice cocktail, apple cider or apple spice bread. It’s so much better than that and better for you.
Its sour, sweet and rounded out with warm notes of cinnamon, clove and ginger. It’s delicious piled on top of a baked sweet potato, served alongside roast turkey, chicken or pork, added to fall salads or blended with olive oil for a tangy fall dressing.
Apple Spice Sauerkraut is absolutely delicious! A must try.
Health Benefits of Apple Spice Sauerkraut
Some of the positive effects I have experienced eating fermented foods are clearer skin, better digestion and increased energy.
- Probiotic – fermented foods like this sauerkraut contain more probiotics than a probiotic pill and research has shown that the good bacteria are more likely to survive the digestive system than ones from a pill.
- Enzymes- the enzymes in fermented foods help assist in breaking down food, making meals easier for your body to digest.
- Fiber – sauerkraut is rich in fiber and feeds the friendly bacteria in your gut, moves food though your digestive tract and makes you regular (poo).
- Relieves diarrhea and constipation – the friendly bacteria in fermented foods balance the inner ecosystem in the digestive track.
- It also relieves gas, heartburn and improves mood and mental health.
- 1 head of cabbage
- 2 tablespoons of fine celtic sea salt or other high quality salt
- 3 medium apples shredded (about 3 cups)
- 1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 quart sized mason jar or 2 small glass jars
- Pull 3 outer leaves off the head of cabbage and set aside. Shred the remaining cabbage in a food processor, mandolin or chop with a knife. Add it to a big bowl.
- Sprinkle the cabbage with sea salt. Mix and massage the sea salt into the cabbage for about 5 minutes.
- Set the cabbage aside and let it sit for 15-20 minutes so the sea salt has time to draw out the liquid and make the cabbage soft.
- Shred the apples using a food processor or cut them into thin strips.
- Add the shredded apples, ginger, cinnamon and cloves to the cabbage mixture.
- Mix and squeeze the cabbage mixture with your hands or a vegetable pounder until liquid comes out when squeezed.
- Pack the cabbage in the mason jar tightly with either your hand or a vegetable pounder. Push it all the way down until it submerges in its own juices (this is the brine).
- Repeat this until there is about 1½ inches of space from the top of the jar.
- Roll up the leaves and place them in the jar to push the cabbage under the brine.
- Screw on the jar loosely so gas can escape as fermentation takes place. Set on the counter for 5-7 days in a cool, shaded place. Place a plate under the mason jar in case it bubbles over and makes a mess.
- During fermentation the sauerkraut will bubble a little and become cloudy. If scum appears, remove it with a spoon.
- Remove the rolled up cabbage leaves and toss in the garbage before eating.
- Store in the fridge.
Make my Apple Spice Sauerkraut recipe this weekend and enjoy the taste of sweet apples, cinnamon and spice in this healing, probiotic food. Comment below to let me know what you’re fermenting right now.
Happy Fermenting!
Danielle
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This sounds amazing Danielle!
Thank you Chantelle! My husband can’t stop saying how good it is. He almost ate the whole batch already :)
Going to try this tomorrow to replace apple sauce. Will this last in the storeroom or does it need refrigeration after the fermentation period? I think I need a coolroom to store all these fermented foods!
It needs to be stored in the refrigerator to slow down the fermentation. Unless your store room is cool like a cellar.
Just made a batch today. It smells and tastes so good already!
To get the salt always right, you simply add 3% by weight.
Weigh all the ingredients including added water if neccessary, so if the total is 1Kg, you use 30grams salt.
Just made my first batch! It smells so good and looks delicious. Now to make fermented carrots as I just took out my garden yesterday. Thank you for all these ideas! Guess what I’m handing out for Christmas? Lol
Thank you Tammy! It makes a great gift too :)
I just made a kraut almost exactly like this recipe but I used purple cabbage. It’s so pretty and delicious. I already had a batch of green garlic kraut. I also made one large batch of carrot, beet, and wakame kraut with mustard seeds recently.
Wow! That all sounds amazing. Great job!
This was my first try at fermenting anything more than kefir, and my family LOVED this recipe! This is going to be a heritage favorite, for sure. Thank you! :)
This was my first time making a small batch fermented food. Made a HUGE crock of kraut a couple years ago and was surprised how easy it was! No mold; no problems. I made a batch of apple spice kraut 5 days ago and found mold on the cabbage leaves tonight. (yuck) I’m assuming I should through out these leaves but should I replace them? Also the kraut still smells sweet. Shouldn’t it be starting to smell a little “krautie” by now? (Although I do LOVE the way this smells!)
I would throw the moldy cabbage leaves away now. The kraut under the brine is fine. It smells a little sweet because of the apples. Give it more time if you want it more sour. Here are some ways to prevent mold in small batch fermentation: https://www.fermentedfoodlab.com/how-to-prevent-mold-when-fermenting-vegetables/
Looks delicious!
What do you think about using a drop of essential clove oil instead of ground cloves?
“Remove the rolled up cabbage leaves and toss in the garbage before eating.”
Couldn’t I just eat it from a plate?
LOLOL… :-)