Criss Cross Applesauce

With the beginning of fall here it means that it is time to get into the kitchen! Over the weekend I went to a local apple orchard with my best friend Bailey to pick up some apples to make delicious treats. One of the treats I knew I wanted to make was homemade applesauce because if we're being honest store bought just isn't the same, am I right? If you've never made homemade applesauce before I'm going to share a recipe with you that is simple to do, and if you choose to can it for longer storage that's great. If not, no worries you can keep it in the fridge for a little while! This recipe came from www.ballmasonjars.com and all you need is 7-10# of apples (your choice), sugar (if you want sweetened), lemon juice, and water.

First you will want to start by washing your apples in cold water, and if you prefer to have them peeled, like I do, then go ahead and peel them. Although I might add, leaving the peels on adds a beautiful color to the end product. I purchased a nifty apple peeler/corer combo that is simple to use! However, sometimes the corer will act up so I decided to remove that part and just core them myself with a normal apple slicer.

These apples were so juicy so a paper towel was needed to catch all the extra!

Once your apples are peeled and sliced it is time to place them in a pot with about a cup and a half of water. You will want the apples and water brought to a boil to where the apples start to get soft. When they are soft enough to slice through with a spoon you will transfer them to a food processer, blender, whatever you've got handy. I picked up a food processer at my local thrift store for cheap and it has yet to fail me! Process the cooked apples until they have the appearance of applesauce.

Once you've got them chopped to your liking you are going to transfer the sauce back into the pot and bring to a boil and add in 3 tablespoons of lemon juice (if canning) and 1.5 to 2.5 cups of sugar (optional). I did because I like my applesauce a little bit sweeter; dang sweet tooth.

I would like to add if you have never canned before there are some basics that need to be covered! Be sure to wash your jars and lids, even if they are new. If you have a dishwasher this process will be easy. When I had a dishwasher I would run a normal cycle with my jars and keep them in there until I was ready to fill them. However, if you don't have a dishwasher you will want to fill your water bath pot with water, place jars in the water, and bring it to a boil. If you fill a cold jar with hot substance it will more than likely break. After your jars have been cleaned and heated it's time to fill them up! You will want to ensure there is about a half inch of headspace remaining, so don't fill the jars to the brim. Remove any possible air bubbles in your applesauce, wipe the rim and place on your warm flat with a band on top and tighten just fingertip tight. You will then place your filled jars in your water bath pot, with about an inch of water above the top of the jars and bring the water to a boil. Once the water is boiling you will leave your jars in there for 20 minutes.

I heated my flats by placing them in a shallow pan in some water and brought the water to a boil

After your 20 minutes is up you will turn the stove burner off and let them sit for about five minutes. At this point it is time to remove your jars and place them on a towel or potholder and let them sit for a minimum of 12 hours. If the bands appear to be loose don't retighten them! When the 12 hours is up you can test the lids to see that the "bubble" isn't there, meaning they have sealed correctly, and remove the bands, label your jars, and place them in your pantry!

I made traditional applesauce first and then decided I wanted to make a cinnamon applesauce (left). I filled some jars with the traditional and then added cinnamon and nutmeg to taste, I measured with the heart, to the remaining applesauce and filled the last three jars.

Congratulations! You have successfully made homemade applesauce. I hope you enjoyed this journey with me and will be back for the next one! Until next time...