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How to Make Applesauce With NO Special Equipment
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This month's notes: November 2009: Apples are ripe. Learn about each apple variety here. Pumpkins and winter squash are in. (be sure to see our easy pumpkin pie-from a fresh pumpkin recipe!  Fall raspberries are still available in some places, and many vegetables are still in full swing! Organic farms are identified in green!  (Fruit and vegetable festivals are here). Make your own applesauce, apple butter, salsa, spaghetti sauce and save money on food bills and eat better. See easy canning instructions/recipes, canning equipment guide! Also make your own ice cream - see How to make ice cream and ice cream making equipment and manuals
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OK, so you don't want to can a dozen quarts, you just want enough for a dinner meal?  Here's the quick and easy way to make applesauce with NO special equipment. If you want to can larger quantities of applesauce for later, see this page instead.

The applesauce will taste MUCH better than anything you've ever had from a store, and by selecting the right apples, it will be so naturally-sweet that you won't need to add any sugar at all.

You don't need a fancy (and expensive food mill and sieve).  Here's how to do it without, complete instructions in easy steps and completely illustrated. I will forewarn you that it takes much more time to make it without a food mill, BUT it certainly can be done, and it certainly works for small batches!

If you decide to can the applesauce, the jars have a shelf life of 18 months to 2 years, and require no special attention.  And of course, you can freeze the applesauce instead (it keeps indefinitely in a good freezer).

Directions for Making Applesauce, Without a Food Mill or Food Processor

Ingredients and Equipment

• Apples (see step 1)
  
• Cinnamon
  
• Jar grabber (to pick up the hot jars)
• Jar funnel ($2 at mall kitchen stores and local "big box" stores, but it's usually cheaper online from our affiliates)
• At least 1 large pot
• Large spoons and ladles
• Ball jars (Publix, Kroger, other grocery stores and some "big box" stores carry them - about $8 per dozen quart jars including the lids and rings)

• Very large pot or 1 Water Bath Canner (a huge pot with a lifting rack to sterilize the jars of applesauce after filling (about $20 to $35 at mall kitchen stores and local "big box" stores, but it's usually cheaper online from our affiliates) You CAN use a large pot instead, but the canners are deeper, and have a rack top make lifting the jars out easier. If you plan on canning every year, they're worth the investment.
• Vegetable / fruit peeler ($1.99 at the grocery store)

Step 1 - Selecting the apples

The most important step!  You need apples that are sweet - NOT something like Granny Smith's.  Yeah, I know you like them (why do sweet women like sour apples???) and even if I did, they still wouldn't make good applesauce - you'd have to add a lot of sugar. 

Instead, choose apples that are naturally sweet, like Red Delicious, Gala, Fuji, Rome and always use a mixture - never just one type.  This year I used

• 40% red Delicious,
• 30% Fuji,
• 10% Yellow Delicious,
• 10% Gala and
• 10% Winesap. 

This meant it was so sweet I did not need to add any sugar at all.  And the flavor is great! The Fuji's and Gala's give it an aromatic flavor!

Step 2 - How many apples and where to get them

You can pick your own, or buy them at the grocery store.  Grocery store prices for apples typically range from $1 to $2 per lb.  Of course, in larger quantities, they can be had for much less. They were available from late September at $12 to $24 per bushel (which is 42 pounds, so even at $24 per bushel, that's only 57 cents per pound).

If you're only making a small amount, figure about 3 to 4 pounds of apples per quart of applesauce you want to make.

Buying in bulk, you'll get about 12 to 14 quarts of applesauce per bushel of apples. 

Step 3 -Wash and peel the apples!

I'm sure you can figure out how to wash the apples in plain cold water.

Using a vegetable peeler or a paring knife, peel the apples.

Step 4 -Wash and peel and chop the apples!

Chopping them is much faster if you use one of those apple corer/segmenters - you just push it down on an apple and it cuts it into segments. 

Yes, this picture shows skins (I forgot to take a photo of this step with peeled apples)

Step 5 - Cook the Apples

Pretty simple! Put about 1 inch of water (I used either filtered tap water or store brand apple juice) on the bottom of a huge, thick-bottomed pot. Put the lid on, and the heat on high.  When it gets really going, turn it to medium high until the apples are soft through and through. As the apples cook, they'll release more water (apples are 99% water!).

Step 6 - Sieve, mush or mix the cooked apples

Some varieties of apples are very watery - if you want thick applesauce, just pour or ladle off the excess water - but DO save it - it's apple juice and tastes great!  You can filter it through a coffee filter in a funnel if you want it clear!

Whether you pour off excess water or not, you can either put the soft cooked apples through a sieve, or simply stir them vigorously in the pot to mush them up! Obviously a Foley food mill or strainer helps a lot, but you can do it by hand trough a colander, metal sieve or mush mush them up with a potato masher, a whisk or even a stand mixer or hand mixer.

You can also put them into the food processor or blender to whip them into a smooth puree!

Mirro Stainless Steel Foley Food Mill 2Qt.

Features:

• Heavy tin-plated steel
• For applesauce, apple butter
• Remove seeds from blackberries
• Rice potatoes
• Has supports for resting on top of bowl or pot
• About $20 - click on the links at left for current pricing

Step 7 - Season and keep the applesauce hot

Put the applesauce into a large pot. Add cinnamon to taste.  You should not need to add any sugar.  

The applesauce does not need any further cooking; just keep it hot until you get enough made to fill the jars you will put into the canner (Canners hold seven jars at once, whether they are quart or pint size). 

Of course, if you are going to eat the applesauce fresh, freeze it, or just store it in the fridge (lasts a week or two) then you're done!

If you want to can the applesauce:

Step 8 - Wash the jars and lids

The dishwasher is fine for the jars; especially if it has a "sterilize" cycle. Otherwise put the jars in boiling water for 10 minutes. I just put the lids in a small pot of almost boiling water for 5 minutes, and use the magnetic "lid lifter wand" (available from target, other big box stores, and often grocery stores; and available online - see this page) to pull them out.

Step 9 - Fill the jars

Fill them to within ¼-inch of the top, wipe any spilled applesauce of the top, seat the lid and tighten the ring around them.  Put them in the canner and keep them cover with at least 1 inch of water and boiling. Boil them for at least 20 minutes (and no more than 30 min).

Step 10 - Done

Lift the jars out of the water and let them cool without touching or bumping them in a draft-free place (usually takes overnight)  You can then remove the rings if you like. Once the jars are cool, you can check that they are sealed verifying that the lid has been sucked down. Just press in the center, gently, with your finger. If it pops up and down (often making a popping sound), it is not sealed. If you put the jar in the refrigerator right away, you can still use it. Some people replace the lid and reprocess the jar, then that's a bit iffy. If you heat the contents back up, re-jar them (with a new lid) and the full time in the canner, it's usually ok.

Other Equipment:

From left to right:

1. Jar lifting tongs 
           helpful to pick up hot jars
2. Lid lifter 
           - to remove lids from the pot 
           of hot water 
3. Lid 
          - disposable - you may only 
          use them once
4. Ring 
         - holds the lids on the jar until after
         the jars cool - then you don't need them
5. Canning jar funnel
         - to fill the jars

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Do I have to use a sieve or food mill, if I peel the apples before I cook them for applesauce? I'm really one of the cheapest people ever and would rather do the extra work than go buy equipment!

A. Nope, if you peel the apples (and remove the stems, seeds, core) you can cook it and just stir it vigorously. It will never be a smooth as regular applesauce made through a sieve, but you can just call it "chunky applesauce"!

Q. Can I use a blender for making apple sauce instead of a food mill or food processor?

Certainly! Of course, you’ll need to peel, cut, core and manually remove the seeds first, before you cook the apples; unless  you want them all blended up into the applesauce. I get letters from people say they prefer it that way. I think I’ll keep using the strainer…. But sure, aside from the extra work in preparation , you can use the blender.  Some people use a juicer, too.

* All the tools you need for hot waterbath canning - in one comprehensive set!
* Complete with 21 1/2 qt. enameled waterbath canner and "Ball Blue Book" of canning.
* Also includes canning rack, funnel, jar lifter, jar wrencher, bubble freer, tongs and lid lifter.
* A Kitchen Krafts exclusive collection.

Click here for a larger photo, more information, pricing, ordering, etc.

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Home Canning Kits

Features:

This is the same type of  standard canner that my grandmother used to make everything from applesauce to jams and jellies to tomato and spaghetti sauce. This complete kit includes everything you need: the canner, jar rack, jar grabber tongs, lid lifting wand, a plastic funnel, labels, bubble freer, and the bible of canning, the Ball Blue Book. You'll never need anything else except more jars and lids!
Features:

 

Mirro Stainless Steel Foley Food Mill
3 1/2Qt size.

Lids, Rings, Jars, mixes, pectin, etc.

Need lids, rings and replacement jars?  Or pectin to make jam, spaghetti sauce or salsa mix or pickle mixes?  Get them all here, and usually at lower prices than your local store!

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