Easy Homemade Applesauce

Image via Google Images

I can hear some of you now..... why on earth would anyone want to make something that you can easily buy in a jar?  My friend Michelle, in fact, teased me about just that.

There are a lot of reasons, including knowing what goes into the apple sauce, being able to control the amount of sugar and my favorite, awesome taste!  Homemade applesauce blows the jarred stuff out of the water.  And it's crazy easy to make, especially if you have the right tools.  It's a fun cooking activity for your little ones, too.

One tool that makes any apple dish easier is the apple corer.

 It's a simple and cheap tool that especially punches out the core.


Another tool is the apple slicer, which not only cores, but slices.

This works best if you peel first (I've made the mistake of not doing that and then having to peel each slice.  Not fun.


Now, if you want to get super fancy, you'd get yourself an apple peeler.  You could whip through a bag of apples in no time.   Some even core at the same time.

 I just use a good old fashioned paring knife and the peeling is done in no time.

The recipe is a base recipe and can be easily adjusted to taste.  Some like a very sweet applesauce, where others like a more tart one.  Spices are up to your taste, too.  The base recipe calls for cinnamon, but nutmeg and/or apple pie spice mix can easily be used.

The choice of apples is also yours.  Typically, you want a softer, sweeter apple, like  Red Delicious, Gala, Fuji, Winesap, McIntosh or Yellow Delicious.  I like a tarter choice too, like Granny Smith.  It's good to mix types if you can.  This holds the same for apple pies and crisps.   Pick organic apples, when you can, to keep pesticides and other not-so-good things from your tasty creation. 

Use up your applesauce in about 2 weeks.  Mine never ever lasts that long though.  It can be frozen too.

Homemade Applesauce



12 apples, such as Granny Smith or McIntosh
1 1/2 cup water
3/4 cup sugar (or to taste)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon or apple pie spic mix (or to taste)
Peel and slice the apples into small pieces. Put apples in a pot

Add water to pot and bring to a low boil over medium heat, mashing apples as they cook down. Keep the pot covered.

When desired consistency, add sugar and cinnamon. Bring to a boil and then recover and remove from heat. Let cool in the pot and then refrigerate.


Base recipe from Pinch of Yum.

All images via Google Images.