One just can’t help extolling the virtues of home mades. The best bit about home made goodies is the amount of control it gives to the person making it. Using ingredients you like , combinations you prefer, increasing or decreasing the amount of particular ingredients according to preferences, the list is endless. And most of all, keeping out all those funny sounding ingredients that can be found in store boughts; yes, you do not need to compromise. I admit, home made goodies, may, at times, take up some time, but in the end, isn’t it worth all the trouble? And some of the things that we buy are actually very easy to whip up in the kitchen.
Now, talking of home mades, I make my own applesauce…
many of you must be doing so too. It does not take that much time, and the end result is so much better than store bought. I usually keep it simple, just apples, honey and lemon juice and sometimes without the honey or lemon juice. According to my mood, I add some spices into them as well…cinnamon and crushed red chillies are my favourites. I also keep it smooth or chunky as per my requirement. The sweetness can be adjusted according to preference. I use whatever apples I have on hand. But I do try to keep away from very tart ones like Granny Smiths. Naturally sweet apples mean that you do not have to add too much of additional sweetness. In fact, in some cases, I do not add any sweetness to the applesauce. I usually make small amounts when needed.
The following is my basic recipe for a smooth applesauce ( I used gala apples), it makes about 1 and 1/3 C of smooth applesauce…modify it as you wish-
What’s needed-
3 apples, washed, peeled ( you can keep the peels on if you wish), cored and cut into small pieces( should be about 3C)
3 tblsp of honey (more or less)
1 tsp of lemon juice
How to-
- Place all the ingredients in a thick bottomed pan and place over medium heat. Stir well.
- Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for about 12-15 minutes or till the apples are very soft ( should go mushy when touched). Keep stirring in between.
- Remove from heat and mash or puree in a food processor for a smooth sauce.
That’s it ! Wasn’t that easy? Of course, as I said earlier, the sweetness can be adjusted according to preference, and you can spice it up too.
- My applesauce is quite thick, but you can always make it lighter by adding a little water or sugarfree apple juice.
- If you make large amounts and have leftovers, keep it in the refrigerater.
- While the apples cook, do keep checking. If the liquid dries out before the apples are cooked properly, add some more…scorching is definitely not going to enhance the taste!
- The apples in my first batch released enough moisture for them to cook without any aditional water. But the later batches needed some. In fact, to be on the safe side, I would suggest that you put in enough water to cover the bottom of the pan while putting in the chopped apples. Experiment with different apples to know how much water is needed.
I made my first batch by peeling the apples, but nowadays I do not bother. Moreover it seems such a waste of nutrients, and it does give a lovely hue too ; that is, if the peels are bright red
And yes, no dodgy and funny sounding ingredients here
And here is a nice article on how to substitute applesauce for oil or butter.
{ 25 comments… read them below or add one }
Love that pink with peels. no one eats apple sauce in our house:-( But i did make a lot (without honey & lemon) when my girls were babies. DD1 loved it.. may be she had too much of it?
could definitely use this for baking.. when i learn to use substitutes:-)
I use it for baking
Making Apple sauce at home to give to people is very traditional X Mas thing to do here. One of Arvind’s patients gives us 2 bottles every year in Dec, one regular sweet and another one with Cinnamon and ginger pd added. So tasty. Love the reddish hue in the last photo!
That looks super delicious, I could have a whole bowl of it on its own! Home-made’s have so many advantages to them, and are definitely worth it. I haven’t tried making apple sauce though, been buying the cute baby food bottles, I have a mini collection of the them for my spices
Actually, i love spoonfuls of it too
i just love homemade apple sauce. Never made it myself though!
It’s very easy..try it
I’ve been meaning to make applesauce and make cakes with that.
Never had the heart to try… the fear of spoiling good apples
Wow adorable apple sauce……..
Thanks Lubna
This is lovely. I haven’t eaten applesauce but I can find so many recipes in our blog which can use it. will try some soon!
Thanks…do give it a try
That’s such a beautiful hue – so the peel gets strained easily or do you have to cut up the pieces a bit larger?
I didn’t strain it…just blended it in the food processor.
wow……..i always wondered what applesauce was but never bothered to look it up
when i had just started on solids for my son i used to peel off the apple skin, core the apples and pressure cook them with little water and a pinch of cinnamon powder…….now i realise i was feeding him applesauce……..once i had so much left over coz of my little ones eating mood swings that i made a layered cake with it……..and everyone at home just loved the cake….and i didnt even know it was applesauce
See, sometimes the fancy names just make it seem all so complicated
Sunita lovely applesauce.
One thing though, a few days back at Jugalbandi forum there was a discussion on organic/non-organic. If apples are non-organic, I think it is best peeled or else we really need to wash and scrub them well. Just a suggestion as all that discussion got me really worried about eating non-organic fruits
I make my apple sauce at home too..way better than the ready-made ones..never tried adding the peel though..lovely hue
I too make applesauce at home..You have got a lovely color
Oh my, you made such a delicious applesauce. Vibrant colors.
Wonderful, and so easy.
I agree sunita, homemade applesauce is delish! Looks great too
why don’t you pressure cook it in an inner container? looks gorgeous, but i don’t keep the skin on if the apples are not organic.
We tried this and it got over too soon
the pics look great!