I'm up in Pennsylvania this weekend, and the first apples of the season are ripe! This is really exciting, because apples are so versatile. You can do pretty much anything you want with them -- pie, sauce, crisp, sliced up with peanut butter, baked with marshmallows. They're pretty flexible.
I like apple dishes that use a variety of apples. Saucing apples -- think Macintosh -- dissolve into mush as they cook. Snacking apples -- like Granny's -- are hard and keep their shape when cooked. So it's useful to have a variety to get a nice consistency. Plus, they all have slightly different flavors, so each variety brings its unique taste. Just be aware that homemade applesauce is never going to be exactly as smooth as store bought, regardless of how many mush down. It's just part of the charm.
Applesauce is probably the easiest of all cooked dishes to make. Just core and peel the apples and dump them into the slow cooker. Don't worry about slicing them or cutting them up in any special way. That's pretty much all you need. Apples are generally sweet enough that you don't need to add any extra flavoring or sweetener. (Although you could probably add some cinnamon, vanilla, or sugar if you wanted. Just remember that less is more here, because the apples will absorb the flavor as they cook.) Add about a quarter cup of water to the slow cooker -- just enough that the apples won't burn. Be careful not to add any more than this because the liquid isn't going to boil away like it would if you were to make the sauce on the stove top.
Cook on low for about 4-8 hours. Right at the end of the cooking time (which is flexible and will depend on the varieties of apples that you use), stir the sauce and mush up any particularly big pieces. Transfer to a seal-able container and refrigerate any leftovers.
Bon appetit!
Tags: apples, gluten free, dairy free, vegetarian
I like apple dishes that use a variety of apples. Saucing apples -- think Macintosh -- dissolve into mush as they cook. Snacking apples -- like Granny's -- are hard and keep their shape when cooked. So it's useful to have a variety to get a nice consistency. Plus, they all have slightly different flavors, so each variety brings its unique taste. Just be aware that homemade applesauce is never going to be exactly as smooth as store bought, regardless of how many mush down. It's just part of the charm.
Applesauce is probably the easiest of all cooked dishes to make. Just core and peel the apples and dump them into the slow cooker. Don't worry about slicing them or cutting them up in any special way. That's pretty much all you need. Apples are generally sweet enough that you don't need to add any extra flavoring or sweetener. (Although you could probably add some cinnamon, vanilla, or sugar if you wanted. Just remember that less is more here, because the apples will absorb the flavor as they cook.) Add about a quarter cup of water to the slow cooker -- just enough that the apples won't burn. Be careful not to add any more than this because the liquid isn't going to boil away like it would if you were to make the sauce on the stove top.
Cook on low for about 4-8 hours. Right at the end of the cooking time (which is flexible and will depend on the varieties of apples that you use), stir the sauce and mush up any particularly big pieces. Transfer to a seal-able container and refrigerate any leftovers.
Bon appetit!
Tags: apples, gluten free, dairy free, vegetarian