Apples are very delicious and applesauce is doubly so. Applesauce is very versatile, everyone – from babies to old people – love to eat them. It can also be used as an ingredient in many recipes. Homemade applesauce is the best and far superior over commercial applesauce. It is also more healthy because it doesn’t contain any preservatives.
Making applesauce is very easy and only contains a few important steps.
First, make sure you have all of the ingredients ready. In order to make applesauce that is equivalent to three cups, you will need five large apples, some cinnamon and brown sugar. If you prefer, you can also add some nutmeg and other spices as well. Applesauce is a very forgiving apple recipe. You can use almost all types of apples. But remember that the taste of the applesauce will differ depending on the apples you use. Also, since there are sweet and tart apples, this will also play into the final taste of the applesauce. The best option is to combine different apple types.
You can do the prep work for the apples. First, peel and core them. Ensure that no seeds are accidentally included in the prepared apples. Chop the apples up. Don’t worry about the uniformity of the slices because you’ll make it into a sauce anyway.
Sprinkle cinnamon and brown sugar to the apple slices then you can either use the microwave or a stove to heat up the apples. You can also put in one-fourth cup of water or some apple cider to the saucepan to help in the simmering process. If you do this, make sure that you do not put too much liquid or the sauce will turn watery. If you use a microwave oven, just microwave the apples for about ten minutes. Remove it from the microwave and mash it until it turns into a sauce.
You should further cook the initial applesauce to help remove any lumps. The amount of time for simmering the sauce is a personal preference. Some people like some lumps in their applesauce while others like it completely smooth. Either way, don’t overcook the sauce. A maximum of 20 minutes in the stove is more than enough. If you want your applesauce extremely smooth, mash the sauce periodically while it is simmering to help remove any stubborn lumps.
You can keep any extra applesauce in the freezer. It can keep for almost a week.
Aside from making applesauce, you can also make apple preserves.
Photo from simpledailyrecipes.com