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Juices from fruits are not only extremely tasty, but they are also a good source of vitamin C. Sometimes simply pressing fruit can create a good juice, but more often it is preferable to heat the fruit first. Doing so will both make juicing the fruit easier and deactivate the enzymes that cause fruit juice to lose its flavor.
Using only enough water to cover your fruit, smash it to release the juice and simmer just until it's soft (simmering for too long will cause it to lose flavor). Strain the yield through cheesecloth to remove any remaining solids or hairs. At this point, one could also use the juice to make jam or jelly.
Generally it is best to cool the juice and drink it fresh, but if this isn't practical, or you want to save some of your juice for the winter, you should pasteurize it to prevent it from fermenting (unless you want it to ferment, but that's a matter for a whole different field guide). To do this, heat your juice to 190 degrees Fahrenheit in a double boiler, stirring constantly (pasteurization will only be effective above 185 degrees). At this point, move the juice (still in the top of the double boiler) into a refrigerator. Once cool, you can bottle and freeze the juice. It should keep for up to a year.
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