You can’t go apple picking without making several batches of homemade applesauce afterwards. I love applesauce of all kinds, but nothing beats the taste and smell of applesauce you made yourself. Whenever the smell of cinnamon and apples fills the apartment, it takes me back to kindergarten when we made our own applesauce – it was so exciting for us! This time, I decided to pull out my crockpot so that I wouldn’t have to worry about watching apples cooking over the stove while I needed to study. I don’t think I’ll ever make it any other way, now!
When I went apple picking, I made sure to get some of each kind of apple – Crispin, Empire, Cortland, Ida Red, and Gala – so that I would have a good mixture of tart and sweet apples for baking and making the perfect combination for applesauce. Since I didn’t want to add any sugar, I only used a few of the greener apples, sticking mostly to the sweeter reds. I think a lot of the fun of making your own applesauce is finding the combination of apples that suits your tastes! Even if it’s a tart apple, I find that cinnamon really makes it seem sweeter than it is. I definitely never miss the sugar! If you do find it to be too tart after it’s done cooking, you can always add some maple syrup – it’ll really amplify the flavors as well as add sweetness!
The only ingredients you need to make your own applesauce are apples, a few cinnamon sticks (and ground cinnamon), and some water. So easy! Throw it all in the crockpot, and four hours later, you’ve got yourself some soft apples that smell like heaven.
I like my applesauce pretty chunky, so I just stirred it around a good bit to break up the apples, but you can also put it in the food processor if you like it extra smooth! The same goes for skin of the apples; I like to keep the skins on for more texture and fiber (especially since I picked these right off the tree – no weird wax to be found), but you can choose to peel them if you wish! You could also play around with spices, adding cloves, ginger, nutmeg, etc. Have fun with it!
Do you like your applesauce chunky or smooth? With or without apple peels?
- about 10 medium to large apples, cored and roughly chopped (you can peel them if you want)
- 1 cup water
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- ground cinnamon, for finishing
Place the chopped apples, water, and cinnamon sticks in the bowl of a slow cooker. Cook on low, covered, for 4-5 hours, until the apples are soft.
Once done cooking, remove the cinnamon sticks. Break the apples up with a wooden spoon by stirring, until it reaches your desired consistency (for a chunkier applesauce). For a smooth applesauce, transfer the apples to a food processor, processing until smooth. Add ground cinnamon to taste.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. I especially like my applesauce warm, but it’s good either way!
https://cookingalamel.com/2013/10/slow-cooker-applesauce-no-sugar-added.html