Applesauce

I have a apple tree in my back yard and I have been making applesauce for many years. This year we had another bumper crop so I have been busy in the kitchen making applesauce. The best part about apple sauce is that you do not have to peel the apples. You simply core and slice them and then cook them with the skins on. I use a food mill to pass the cooked apples through to squeeze out all the pulp but the skins and seeds remain in the mill. It is a simply gadget that is inexpensive but very useful. I bought mine at Superstore for $25.00. I also have a apple corer that removes the core and slices the apple in one move. If you want to preserve your applesauce I provided the instructions. I make a lot of applesauce so I always process my sauce in jars and enjoy it all year. You can also make one batch and eat it within a week or you can freeze it. You can adjust the sweetness depending on the sweetness of the apples. I add cinnamon to my applesauce and you can adjust this to you own personal tastes. I love to eat applesauce with granola and berries. One recipe yields 8 cups of sauce.

Ingredients:

4 pounds washed, cored and cut apples.

1 ½ cups water

1/4 Cup

1 cup of granulated sugar/brown sugar

1 teaspoon of cinnamon, or more to taste


Instructions:

Core and cut the apples. Place apples into a large pot.

Add water and lemon juice.

Cover and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the apples begin to break down. This takes about 15-30 minutes.

Process the cooked apples through a food mill.

Add sugar.

Add more water to adjust the consistency of the sauce if necessary.

Add cinnamon to taste.

At this point you can store in the refrigerator for a week or preserve in jars for up to a year.

One recipe yields about 8 cups.

Recipe doubles and triples well.


To Preserve the applesauce:

Wash canning jars in hot soapy water.

In a large canner, bring water to a boil. Add jars and boil for 10 minutes.

It is a good idea to have your jars in the hot water while you are cooking the applesauce because you want to put hot applesauce into hot sterilized jars.

Remove some of the hot water into a small bowl and add the lids to the water to sterilize.

Reheat sauce to a boil, again stirring often to prevent sticking.

Fill hot jars with hot applesauce leaving 1/2 inch head space.

Be sure to get any air bubbles out of the jar by running a plastic utensil down the inside of your jars. This will stop any air being trapped in the jars, expanding, and eventually continuing the oxidation process.

Screw band down until resistance is met, then increase to fingertip-tight.

Final step is to process in a waterbath canner. It is important to use the correct time for your altitude. See the chart below to determine your processing time.

Place jars in canner, ensuring they are completely covered with water. Bring to a boil and process both pint (500 ml) and quart (1L) jars for 20 minutes.

When your water bath is finished, remove your canner from the heat source and allow the applesauce to cool for 10-15 minutes in the hot, but not boiling water. This will allow time for the applesauce to cool more slowly and condense without producing excessive air pockets at the top of your jars, thus decreasing the risk of excessive oxidation.

Remove the jars from the water. Once the jars are cool, you can check that they are sealed verifying that the lid has been sucked down. Just press in the center, gently, with your finger. If it pops up and down (often making a popping sound), it is not sealed. If you put the jar in the refrigerator right away, you can still use it.


Process Pints (2 cups or 500mls)

0-1000 feet needs 15 minutes

1000 - 6000 feet needs 20 minutes

above 6000 feet needs 25 minutes

Process Quarts (4 cups or 1 litre)

0-1000 feet needs 20 minutes

1000 - 3000 feet needs 25 minutes

3000 - 6000 feet needs 30 minutes

above 6000 feet needs 35 minutes

Print Recipe:Applesauce

Wash jars in hot soapy water.

Boil the clean jars for 10 minutes to sterilize. Keep jars hot until ready to add the hot applesauce.

Core and slice the apples.

Add the apples to a large pot. Add lemon juice and water. Stir.

Cook over medium-low heat. Cover with lid. Stir occasionally.

The apples are ready for the food mill as they are starting to break down and are nice and soft.

Process through the food mill. Have a pot under to capture all the applesauce.

The food mill will hold back all the skin and seeds. 

Adjust the consistency of the sauce by adding more water if needed.

Add sugar and cinnamon cinnamon. Stir well. Reheat the applesauce.

Take the hot jars out of the water. 

Pour the sauce into the hot jars.

Wipe the rim of the jars so they are free of any sauce. Apply the sterilized lids and rings. Do not tighten the rings real tight at this point. 

Place the jars in the canner. Bring water to a boil and process for twenty minutes. Remove the heat and allow the jars to sit in the hot water for 15 minutes. 

Remove the jars. Allow to cool on counter. Soon after taking out of the water you will hear the lids make a popping sound. That sound means the jars are sealed. Simply press on the seals after the jars are cool. If no resistance than you know you have sealed jars. Tighten the rings if required.