Homemade Applesauce

I’ve recently started to get into canning. I feel like that’s probably a natural progression after having your own edible garden for a little while. So keeping with the simpler things in life, I decided to try my hand at some homemade applesauce.

 

Earlier this year I added two apple trees to my garden collection. I was surprised as you might be that apple trees can even grow in Florida. There are a few varieties that can take the heat, and the two I have are called Anna and Golden Dorsett. They’re from Israel and the Bahamas, respectively.

 

Before you get too excited, I will note – this applesauce recipe was not made from the apples that grew in my backyard. I only ended up with one apple this past season. And I was surprised to even end up with that for such a small tree. But I am getting ready for an abundant season where I have too many apples to eat right off the trees.

 

Applesauce, apple pie filling, apple butter, apple juice.. 

 

I got a canning book after a lot of research and recommendations from others. And a big thank you to everyone who helped me select this one.

 

I love the variety of recipes that are included in this book, and all the pictures as well. This is great for a beginner like myself, as well as for people looking for different things to preserve and different ways to preserve. It includes cooking charts for various fruits and vegetables as a guide that you might want to preserve. It also includes additional recipes – for example, there’s an orange marmalade recipe, and then a chicken recipe that you can add the orange marmalade to. How fun!

This recipe did not come from the book, however, I will be checking it out for other canning recipes for apples, along with everything else it has to offer!

 

This is a tart applesauce. Depending on how you like your applesauce, you may want to add more sugar. This recipe makes 2 pints.

 

First, you’ll want to wash your apples and then peel, core, and slice them.

I have an apple slicer that also peels and cores so this step was fairly quick for me.

Next, you’ll want to add the lemon juice to the apples which helps prevent them from turning brown after you’ve peeled them.

 

Add the chopped apples to a pot with a little bit of water, enough to cover the bottom, to prevent the apples from burning. Cook on a low heat to simmer. Keep a lid on the pot, occasionally stirring. Cook for 30 minutes.

 

After 30 minutes, mash your apples with a potato masher and add the amount of sugar you want and cinnamon. You can test taste to see if it has the tart/sweet flavor that you’re looking for. 

Cook for another 15-30 minutes, depending on how soft your apples are.

Use a food processor if you’d like to remove any lumps.

 

Add to jars and let cool or process depending on how large of a batch you’re making. I don’t think these will last more than a week or two.

 

 

Happy Canning! 🙂