Forget all of your past complaints about store-bought applesauce. The flavor of this homemade applesauce is similar to apple pie’s filling.
Making applesauce is very simple and only needs a few staple ingredients. The bare minimum ingredients are apples, water, and sweetener.
I add cinnamon to the recipe to give it an autumnal flavor, but you could omit it or substitute it with other enticing spices like ginger, nutmeg, or clove. Then, to liven it up, add a tiny splash of apple cider vinegar or lemon juice. Ta da! Introducing the finest applesauce you’ve ever tasted.
Instead of using regular sugar, I use maple syrup (or honey) to naturally sweeten my applesauce. Bonus? You won’t run the risk of having overly sweet applesauce if you use liquid sweetener because you can easily add more to taste at the very end.
You can completely omit the sweetener for no-sugar-added applesauce if you prefer tart applesauce or if you’re using particularly sweet apples.
Application of Homemade Applesauce
An excellent and healthy standalone snack is homemade applesauce. What other uses are there for applesauce?
- As if it were an apple crisp, serve it over ice cream.
- Put homemade applesauce and almond or peanut butter on toast.
- Add it to your oatmeal and stir.
- People go crazy when you make an apple parfait by layering applesauce between yogurt and granola. My recipe testers’ favorites from my cookbook were the apple crisp parfaits.
- Choose from chunky or smooth apple sauce!
- I enjoy homemade applesauce that is chunky in texture, but if you prefer smooth, you can blend it instead. You’ll have more success using your food processor than an immersion blender because this applesauce is thick.
Overall, making this applesauce is entertaining and simple. Let’s get started since it’s apple season!
Also read: Homemade Bircher Muesli
INGREDIENTS
- 2 pounds of Gala apples (or any other variety of sweet red apple, about 4 medium)
- Granny Smith apples weigh 1 1/2 pounds (or Golden Delicious, about 4 medium)
- water, 1/3 cup
- 2 tablespoons of honey or maple syrup, or more to your liking
- 2 teaspoons of cinnamon powder
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice or 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
INSTRUCTIONS
- Apples should be peeled, cored, and cut into 2′′ chunks. The apple chunks, water, maple syrup, and cinnamon should all be combined in a medium Dutch oven or large stainless steel saucepan. Over medium heat, simmer the mixture while covering. For 15 to 20 minutes, simmer the apples, stirring occasionally, until they are soft and crumbling.
- Take the pot off the stove. Use a potato masher, the back of a sturdy spatula or wooden spoon, or a potato to break up chunky applesauce into the desired consistency. Use your food processor to blend applesauce until it is smooth.
- Add the vinegar and stir. Add more maple syrup (I usually add 2 tablespoons), more cinnamon for more spice, or another teaspoon of vinegar for more complexity to taste if necessary.
- Serve warm or cold; let the leftover applesauce cool to room temperature before covering and putting it in the refrigerator. Applesauce can be stored for months in the freezer or for about a week in the refrigerator.