Anyone Have a Recipe for Applesauce?

[Carol Dee]

Red Delicious is not my favorite apple. Period. (So I might be biased.) I am certain you will need to add flavor and the texture could be grainier than you'd hope for. You might want to try something sweet tart and smoother grained to start with. MIL always had a Jonathan and McIntosh in the yard and she used those apples for everything. I would probably go with Fuji, granny smith, Braburn etc...

 

[OldGuy43]

How about Gala's? We get a lot of those around here.

 

[wsmoak]

I used Rome apples last Fall and the applesauce turned out fine.

Try this recipe from Organic Gardening: http://www.organicgardening.com/cook/spiced-pear-cardamom-butter

Even though it's a 'butter' recipe, both times I've made it (once with pears, once with apples,) the consistency has been that of applesauce, not apple butter. I don't have a food mill, so perhaps my stick blender just isn't able to puree it finely enough. I use it to flavor oatmeal in the winter. Yum!

(Prepare yourself for the cost of the cardamom, it's not cheap!)

-Wendy

 

[OldGuy43]

I used Rome apples last Fall and the applesauce turned out fine.

Try this recipe from Organic Gardening: http://www.organicgardening.com/cook/spiced-pear-cardamom-butter

Even though it's a 'butter' recipe, both times I've made it (once with pears, once with apples,) the consistency has been that of applesauce, not apple butter. I don't have a food mill, so perhaps my stick blender just isn't able to puree it finely enough. I use it to flavor oatmeal in the winter. Yum!

(Prepare yourself for the cost of the cardamom, it's not cheap!)
-Wendy

Since one site that I looked at said that cardamom is the third most expensive spice in the world I probably won't be trying that. I did however find this article about a substitute:

Cardamom has a flavor and fragrance all it's own, but if you don't have any on hand, this cardamom substitute is a decent stand in:
Prep Time: 2 minutes
Total Time: 2 minutes
Ingredients:

Cinnamon
Nutmeg

Preparation:

Mix together equal parts cinnamon and nutmeg, and use in place of the cardamom called for in your recipe.

Out of nutmeg? Try equal parts cinnamon and ginger or equal parts cinnamon and ground gloves instead.

I wonder if they are recommending new or used gloves? I think they meant cloves. At least I hope so.

 

[Carol Dee]

How about Gala's? We get a lot of those around here.

I think Gala would be better than Delicious.

 

[diggerthechickenman]

I'd use NEW gloves. But that's just me.

 

[swampducks]

My DH makes great applesauce. He peels them first, mainly because our apples come off our trees growing scattered all over the swamp so they're kind of ugly on the outside, cooks them down with a little water, mashes them up and then adds sweetener if necessary, and that could be sugar, maple syrup or honey. Then he'll add all sorts of things, sometimes cinnamon, dried currents, blueberries, raspberries. He just goes by taste, the stuff is awesome.

Unfortunately this year we'll have to buy apples because that March heat wave followed by the normal freezes killed off any apples we may have had at all.

 

[cityfarmer]

Here is the applesauce from the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving

12 pounds apples, peeled, cored, quartered, treated to prevent browning and drained
Water
3 cups sugar (optional)
4 tbsp lemon juice

1. Prepare canner and lids
2. In a large stainless steel saucepan, combine apples with just enough water to prevent sticking. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and boil gently, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 20 minutes, until apples are tender (time will depend upon the variety of apple and their maturity). Remove from heat and let cool slightly, about 5 minutes.
3. Working in batches, transfer apples to a food mill or a food processor fitted with a metal blade and puree until smooth.
4. Return apple puree to saucepan. Add sugar, if using, and lemon juice; bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently to prevent sticking. Maintain a gentle boil over low heat while filling jars.
5. Ladle hot applesauce into hot jars, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace, if necessary, by adding hot applesauce. Wipe rim. Center lid on jar. Screw band down until resistace is met, then increase to fingertip=tight.
6. Place jars in canner, ensuring they are completely covered with water. Bring to a boil and process both pint and quart jars for 20 minutes adjusting for altitude if necessary.

This makes about 8 pint jars or 4 quart jars. If you omit the sugar it makes slightly less.

You must add the lemon juice for safe canning to assure the acid levels of the finished product.

Variations:
Spiced applesauce: In step 4, add 4 tsp ground spices, such as cinnamon, nutmeg or allspice, to the sauce with the sugar and lemon juice
Chunky applesauce: In Step 4, coursely crush half of the coocked apples and puree the reminder. Combine before adding the sugar.

 

[Jared77]

Red Delicious is not my favorite apple. Period. (So I might be biased.)

AMEN!!! Delicious apples are the one brand of apple I really don't care for.

We use whatever apples we can find at a good price. I've bought them by the bushel, and in bags at the grocery store, or out of the orchard from what we've picked. I keep my eyes peeled for apples on the clearance rack that are just starting to get soft or have some ugly spots. Peel, core, toss in the pot on low, little bit of water to keep them from sticking on the bottom of the pot and let them cook down. Stir occasionally add cinnamon, nutmeg to taste. Can it and call it good. Thats how we do ours. I don't think 2 batches have ever been exactly the same but each one is a BIG hit.

I LOVE making apple sauce. I'm guilty of peeling apples till my finger tips are all pruny from handling a bunch of apples. We make BIG batches of it since all your doing is cooking it down so we fill the pots and let them cook down.

Speaking of the discount rack I also buy pears and peaches there too for butters. We also go to the farmers market and will buy baking fruit. Those are the fruits that may have a bruise, or a scar, anything that isn't perfect looking so people may pass on but once peeled you'd never know they had an issue. I always ask any of the sellers there if they have any and have gotten some really good deals that way too.

 

[ducks4you]

I don't add anything to my mashed apples. I just peel, cut, boil in some water on the stove, mash down then pour into jars and hot-bath them. It's much healthier to not add sugar to them. I have no apples this year, due to 2 freezes at just the right time, but I've canned apple pie filling in the past with the sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. I just add flour and dot with butter when I put it in a pie shell. Saves a lot of time.