This is another one I got from The American Cider Book, by Vrest Orton.
Take a gallon or two of fresh-pressed apple juice (also called “sweet cider”, and not to be confused with most of the stuff labelled “cider” that you’ll find in the grocery store) and bring it to the boil in a large saucepan. Skim the foamy junk off the top. Continue boiling until you’ve reduced the stuff to about one eighth or one tenth of its original volume. Watch out when you get close to the end! As it begins to thicken it will foam up very nicely, and will attempt to boil over. Not only that, but it’s extremely hot and very sticky.
When the boiled cider has cooled, bottle it. If you make it correctly it will keep for a year or more, even at room temperature. Not that it’s likely to last that long once you get a taste of it.
I sometimes brush boiled cider on poultry that I’m going to grill or broil, or use it as the basis of a marinade; I bet you could make a killer barbecue sauce out of it.
You can also use it as a sweetener (though it is much
more tart than honey), or to make boiled cider pie. If
anyone really demands it I’ll try to dig out the
book and put a recipe up here, but the basic gig is
simple enough--you make a custard of boiled cider and
eggyolks and milk (and maybe cream) and spices. You then
pour the custard into a pie shell and bake it to set
it. (’Least, that’s how I remember it. I
can’t eat milk things, and I haven’t
actually made one of these yet.)