Every year in late September I make a trip to one of the local apple farms. This year was a great one for the farmers with weekly rainfall during the summer months. The apples are big, juicy, and extra sweet this year.
After purchasing 3 bushels of apples it was time to start making applesauce for the pantry. I rarely eat it since I am not really a fan of sweets, but, my husband and grandsons love my homemade applesauce. It is one way to have "an apple a day to keep the doctor away".
By the time I finished 4 days of peeling, coring, and chopping up the apples, my wrist was not happy with me. Thankfully, my husband assisted with the last bushel which helped a lot.
Making applesauce is the simplest thing to do. I choose 3-4 varieties of sweet apples to give the sauce a nice flavor. They cook down easily with just a little bit of water in the bottom of the pan. If you ever make your own, you can add a little bit of sugar to make it sweeter if needed. I don't usually do so as the apples I choose are sweet enough.
I cook the apples stirring them every 10 minutes or so as I don't want them to scorch on the bottom of the kettle. When they are almost done I will use my stick blender to break up some of the chunks. I do leave some in since having a chunky applesauce is more appealing to us for some reason.
Half of the jars will be plain applesauce and the rest will be cinnamon flavored. Adding the cinnamon to the sauce in the last few minutes of cooking is easy to do. Just stir it well to be combined throughout the entire batch.
Filling the hot jars to 1/2" headspace, cleaning the rim, and putting on lids are all that is left to do. Process the jars in a water-bath canner for 15 minutes and you have #homemade #applesauce.
This is only the first day's progress, but as you can see I did get a lot made so far. What is so great about making your very own applesauce is that you know exactly what is in the jar. Who really knows what goes into the ones that you buy at the market. Just my opinion but at least I know what I am feeding my family.
I wish you could smell the wonderful aroma that filled my home while making the applesauce. It is one of those scents of the fall season that just feels comfy and cozy somehow.
Until next time, this is Sunscape
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