Putting Up Applesauce
October 6, 2016 • Fruit, Technique
I am often in Italy at this time of year, as it’s a popular time for my guests to like to travel to the cooking school, but this year I found myself at home and alone for my birthday weekend, a rare occurrence for me. But alone I was, so I spent the weekend visiting various farmers’ markets in Denver, one of my favorite ways to pass the time.
I didn’t really intend to make applesauce for canning this year, but as I was getting ready to leave one of the markets, I heard one of the guys from Ela Family Farms showing the #2 apples to a client. They looked pretty great to me, and at only $24 for a 20+ pound box, I was hooked. Applesauce is easy to make, just a little time consuming with all of the peeling, and my 20 pound box yielded 12 pints of nice thick applesauce. Got apples? Give it a try. And then check out my Perfectly Pan-Seared Pork-Chop recipe on this site to have for dinner with your applesauce.
- 20 pounds of apples, peeled, cored, and roughly chopped
- ½ cup water
- 4 cinnamon sticks, optional
- 1 cup sugar, optional
- Divide the chopped apples between 2 large pots and add ¼ cup of water to each pot. Add the cinnamon sticks, bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and cook, covered, until the apples are soft, about 15 minutes.
- Remove the cinnamon sticks and either roughly mash by hand or run through a food mill for smooth applesauce. Taste for sweetness and add sugar if desired.
- Add applesauce to hot, sterile jars, leaving ½ inch head space. Cover with clean lids and rings, and process in a hot water bath for 20 minutes.
- Allow to cool and ensure that jars have sealed properly before storing in the pantry. If any do not seal correctly, refrigerate and eat within a week.