Homemade Applesauce

[agriffin]

Yummy! I made applesauce this weekend!

So this weekend was my first adventure in canning...

After pouring through this site http://www.pickyourown.org/applesauce.htm

I finally got up the nerve to make some applesauce. Here's how I did it...

I bought about 14 Gala apples from a market in Arlington- make sure you get sweet apples for your applesauce. I ran up to Ace Hardware and got a jar lifter, a jar funnel and an apple corer/segmenter. I didn't get any other special equipment or canning pots/racks...

I put my jars in my big stainless steel stock pot and set to boil to sterilize the jars. I put the lids and rims in another pan in very hot water (not boiling) to sterilize.

I used the apple corer/segmenter to cut and core the apples. They went into a pot with an inch of distilled water to cook - don't fill the pan with water (like boiling potatos). Some people peel their apples, but I wanted to include the peel in the sauce.

After the apples where cooked, I put them into the blender a little at a time and blended. I had to add a little water from the pot to help with the blending but it actually did a great job. Some people use food processors or seives to moosh the apples and strain out the seeds and peels. The blender worked great for me.

I put the blended apples back into the pot and put on low to keep warm. At this point you can add your seasoning (if any) so I added just a pinch of cinnamon. The apples were really sweet so I didn't add any sugar. Now it was time to can. So I called my super duper handy boyfriend, Mike, in to help me pour into the jars.

At this point the jars were still in the boiling water so I went ahead and turned that to low so it wasn't boiling anymore. I used my jar lifter to lift out a jar. Because it was so hot it dried as soon as I lifted it out of the water. Mike held the funnel and I poured the sauce into the jars. After I filled a jar, I got a lid and ring out of the hot water that they were in and closed up the jar. Then using my jar lifter I put the jar of sauce back into the pot with hot water and got out the next empty jar.

I used 12-14 apples so I only got 3 pint size jars of sauce canned. After they were all back into the big pot of water I made sure there was an inch of water covering them all and set to boil. I boiled them for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, I used my jar grabber and removed each jar and set on the counter to cool.

I promptly removed one of the rings to make sure the lid was sealled correctly...POP! (You aren't supposed to do this!) I went back and read the instructions again...oh...woops...you're supposed to do that after they are cooled. Okay well, that one will go in the fridge and be eaten this week! Lesson learned. Leave them alone until they are cooled!

Aside from that mistake it went very smoothly! The applesause is extremely yummy. And it feels good to eat something that contains only the ingredients I wanted and something that I made myself!

If you don't want to can, you can make the applesauce and freeze it.

 

[GAJenny]

Love it!

I did my first canning year before last and I loved it! My brother has a apple tree so we had tons of apples but didnt really use them until then. We ended up making apple sauce, apple butter, apple cider and stewed apples. Needless to say I had apples running out my ears! lol So I ended up giving alot away for christmas gifts. I really felt like you did, I enjoyed the fact that I knew what I was putting in it, and I had made something yummy! lol

Thanks for Sharing!

Jenny

 

[Rodolfo]

This is How I make my homemade applesauce:

Ingredients

4 apples - peeled, cored and chopped
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

In a saucepan, combine apples, water, sugar, and cinnamon. Cover, and cook over medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes, or until apples are soft. Allow to cool, then mash with a fork or potato masher.

 

[IrishLass]

I love the pickyourown site. Their pictures and easy-to-understand directions and tips are wonderful. Instead of apples, I can lots of orange and grapefruit marmalade, and I use the pickyourown's recipe/method, which always comes out great for me. We have 2 very fruitful orange trees in our backyard and my sister has a mini orchard of grapefruit trees, so come winter around here we are fairly swimming in citrus that would otherwise go to waste if we didn't can them. One can only drink so much juice, or make so many smoothies or chicken a l'orange afterall. :wink:


IrishLass

 

[dieSpinne]

Here's a fun applesauce:

4 Large apples (Gala and Mackintosh are good... Fuji are also nice. Granny Smith will need a little extra sugar) Cored Peeled and sliced or cubed.

2 TBsp real butter (unsalted)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup dark brown sugar.

1/8" slice of fresh ginger, peeled and bruised
3 Whole star anise
3 cloves
1" of cinnamon stick.
pinch of dried Tarragon.

Melt butter in heavy saucepan on medium heat and add apples... sprinkle with salt and allow to render. When the apples start to release their juice, add the sugar and allow to cook further. Once the apples start to break up add the spices and cover, stirring occasionally until the sauce is done. Remove the hard spice bits remaining. Adding craisins and allowing to cook for an additional 15 mins or so is delicious.

To make this into apple butter, allow to simmer until the apple mass no longer "weeps" juices onto the floor of the pan, stirring periodically and then spreading the mass over the floor of the pan so that it will caramelize and dehydrate somewhat.