Homemade Applesauce
You'll never buy applesauce from the store again! This is super easy, yummy, affordable, and while you're making it..... you're home smells like absolute heaven! Its the most comforting, festive, inviting scent!
There are only three ingredients that you need, so lets make sure that you have them! Here's a shopping list:
There are some key points you need to know before you make your applesauce:
Red Delicious apples shouldn't be the main apple in your applesauce. They get really mushy when cooked. I know, I know, "but don't you want it mushy"? No. not all of them at least! Mushy is different than pureed. Weird, right?? I use a mix of Granny Smith and Red Delicious. I chose this mixture because I love a hint of the sour from Granny Smith and the structure they give to the applesauce and love the comfort and simple apple flavor of a Red Delicious. You're likely to see a lot of "stay away from Red Delicious apples for baking", however I very much disagree. They have a really simple timeless flavor and so I think they can be used to accentuate any apple dish in varying degrees. I have NEVER had an apple dish flop or not turn out because of a Red Delicious apple. I swear that Red Delicious are the secret ingredient to bomb dot com apple sauce. They are super affordable and can help stretch what ever you pick as your main apple.
It is OK for the apples to brown a little. Don't try to keep each little piece from browning. It doesn't harm the flavor and when you look at applesauce in a bottle, its darker than the original apple anyway.
Fresh lemons don't matter. You heard me. Any kind of lemon juice will work just fine. I have made a lot of homemade applesauce (never canned it until recently) and I have used lemon juice and then the juice from a fresh lemon and couldn't tell a difference. At. All.
LEAVE THE PEEL ON. It adds nutrients and softens as it cooks down. Once you have blended the cooked apples, you won't notice the peels at all.
If you want a sweeter applesauce, sweeten with honey! After you have blended the apples, taste the applesauce CAREFULLY! It will still be super hot. After I learned that the hard way I took a spoonful and set it in a little bowl to cool and taste. Add honey little by little, mixing well until you like the sweetness. I beg of you. BEG. Please don't sweeten with sugar. It messes with the texture. Stick to honey!
You don't have to process it. You can always just refrigerate it and eat it once its cooled. You still follow the recipe the same, just instead of processing it in a water/steam bath, let cool for a few hours on the counter (cool enough you can hold the jar with out it being too hot 6-8 hours is good) and then stick it in the fridge.
If you’re wanting to store it long term you will need to process it.
Prepping your jars properly is very important. You can do this in a few different ways. The main reason for prepping your jars is for sterilization. You can prep your jars by boiling them, sticking them in a hot oven or running through a pots and pans/STERLIZATION cycle in your dishwasher. The jars need to be hot when you fill them unless otherwise stated in your recipe. The first step that needs to be done before any of the methods below….WASH THOROUGHLY IN HOT SOAPY WATER! Exercise caution with handling the jars. They will be VERY HOT. I recommend oven mitts or a jar lifter designed for canning.
BOILING METHOD: In a large stock pot, add washed jars filled with water on top of a canning rack. You don’t want the jars to touch the bottom of the pan. Fill stock pot with enough water to cover the tops of the jars by 1 inch. Boiling time depends on elevation. Doing a quick search for your elevation and sterilization times for the size of bottle you have. For example “Boiling time to sterilize a 32 oz mason jar in Chicago”. You can use AI helpers or a popular search engine. When done, you’ll fill them according to the recipe you’re using.
OVEN METHOD: Preheat your oven to 275 degrees. Place washed jars on a baking sheet. They can be right side up or upside down. Just make sure they are vertical. Let them sit in the oven for 20 minutes. Make sure non of the jars are touching. Boil the lids and rings for about 5 min for sterilization.
DISHWASHER METHOD: Load the washed jars into the dishwasher and run through the hottest and longest cycle. DONT USE DETERGENT. Leave them in the dishwasher until ready to use.
Now that you have a solid knowledge of base and know all those important bits of information, you are ready to follow the recipe and make some AMAZING applesauce!
