do you put up crabapples?

[grasswire]

I made a batch of spiced pickled crabapples tonight, but I am kind of unhappy that the skins on the fruits split when I simmered them in the liquid. Is there a way I could have avoided that splitting? Should I have poked holes in them first? There's nothing in the recipe about the possibility.

[Denninmi]

1. Mine always did that, too.

Haven't made any of those in the last 3-4 years. I think its probably unavoidable. You could probably score each one vertically 4-5 places around the fruit for a more even appearance -- that might relieve the pressure in a controlled way and avoid random fault lines.

Overall, I actually think the piercing of the skin is a good thing, whether intentional or on its own, because it allows the syrup to saturate the fruit. But, it would be an issue is you wanted picture perfect fruit (such as for a competition at a fair).