Homemade Applesauce

You might be asking yourself, “How does this go under the ‘Cupcakes’ category Woman?!”  I have family members and friends who look down on my excessive use of sugar and ask if I’ve tried using applesauce instead.  You know what the applesauce I bought from the supermarket was packed with?  Sugar!  Oh, and high-fructose corn syrup… that stuff’s bad, mmkay?  Anyway.  I decided to take a family recipe for applesauce and tweak it a bit to be able to be used in cupcakes and muffins.  That’s how it fits.  Seeeee?

You’ll Need

• 8 Red Apples (Medium-sized)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 3/4 cup water

Instructions

Core and slice the apples.  (I have one of these little apple slicer gizmos and it’s a super time saver.)  You want to end up with around 1 inch chunks.  Add the apple chunks to a sauce pan with a lid and drizzle on the lemon juice.  Swirl the whole mix around to make sure the apples are nice and coated.  Add the water and salt to the sauce pan and bring it all to a boil.  Reduce the heat to a low simmer and let it cook for around 20 minutes.  At this point, make sure the apples are nice and mashed.  I just do it with a wooden spoon with holes, but you can also use a potato masher (or big fork) or even give the whole mix a run through the food processor.  Put it back on the heat for five more minutes in its smashed form.

You can serve it warm like it is (great with a graham cracker) or cold.  If done properly, this recipe can be jarred and kept in the fridge in an airtight jar for up to a year.

Applesauce image © Photoeuphoria | Stock Free Images &Dreamstime Stock Photos because it looks about a hundred times better than anything I could take.  I should probably get a nicer camera for this blogging thing, but I’m cheap and grumpy.  You want the food, not just the pretty picture right?  Are you reading this still?  Go make some applesauce.  Oh and try it with a really ripe mushed up banana mixed in.  There, you got advice as a reward for reading this stuff.  You’re Welcome.