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Making Applesauce

September 1st, 2012 at 09:59 pm

I don't know what is up with this virus. One day I'm up, the next day I'm down. It's starting to get annoying. Yesterday I took the day off, didn't do anything but make meals. I put off just about everything I could.

Today I still feel out of it, but not nearly so yucky. I did peel up twelve windfall apples, cut them up, and throw them in the crockpot with 1/2 cup of sugar and 1 TBSP of cinnamon. Set it on low and after four hours I'll mash it with a potato masher and then can it. Easy peasy in comparison to most canning projects.



The nice thing about using windfalls is that you are using up apples that are bruised and wouldn't be used for straight eating and wouldn't be able to be stored for later. It's the ultimate in frugality, I think, to take something most people wouldn't even look at twice and make it into something nourishing to feed the family.

Even if you are like me and have huge textural issues with applesauce, you can put it into cakes, brownies, or cookies, and not have to deal with the texture. You will be cutting some of the fat and increasing the flavor. And apple muffins are really delicious.

I reckon this batch will net me 10 to 11 half-pints of apple sauce. Cost to me is about 25 cents for the sugar and cinnamon. Not bad. As for the cost of it in the store, I'm not sure. I think the last time I looked you could buy a quart of regular applesauce for $1.99. I don't know about organic applesauce. Probably twice that. So it's not the huge cost savings that growing organic berries and making jam gives you. But it's still 25 cents of ingredients versus $5 for non-organic and $10 for organic for the same amount. So for me, I chalk this batch up to saving $9.75 and I know exactly what went into it. That's peace of mind.

Posted in Gardening Organically, , Sustainable Living | 8 Comments »

8 Responses to “Making Applesauce”

  1. rob62521 Says:
    September 1st, 2012 at 11:16 pm 1346541383
    1346541383

    Sorry you aren't feeling well...hope you get over whatever it is. Love the applesauce recipe...thanks!

  2. crazyliblady Says:
    September 2nd, 2012 at 12:39 am 1346546395
    1346546395

    yum

  3. FrugalTexan75 Says:
    September 2nd, 2012 at 02:34 am 1346553242
    1346553242

    Those apples look yummy! I hope you feel better soon! Being sick is the pits Frown

  4. starfishy Says:
    September 2nd, 2012 at 02:56 am 1346554595
    1346554595

    yum! i've never added sugar to homemade applesauce - do you need to in order to can it? i've never preserved it - have only made small batches that i eat within a few days. hope you feel better soon!

  5. LuckyRobin Says:
    September 2nd, 2012 at 04:23 am 1346559824
    1346559824

    Starfishy--I only added sugar because these were tart apples. With sweet apples there is no reason to add sugar. Applesauce does not need sugar for canning. It does not need pectin either because there is a ton of naturally occurring pectin in apples (in fact most pectin is made from apples).

  6. starfishy Says:
    September 2nd, 2012 at 12:03 pm 1346587403
    1346587403

    ah, that makes sense - thanks for info!

  7. My English Castle Says:
    September 3rd, 2012 at 01:29 pm 1346678963
    1346678963

    Hope the delicious smell of the applesauce perked you up! Feel better!

  8. LuckyRobin Says:
    September 3rd, 2012 at 08:12 pm 1346703155
    1346703155

    The smell did. Nothing smells as good as apples, cinnamon and sugar cooking. Wish I liked the texture, though!

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