Simple and easy homemade applesauce with instructions for making on the stovetop, in an Instant Pot, or a slow cooker. It makes a delicious healthy snack or topping for pancakes, oatmeal etc, and is great for baking with too!
💌 SAVE THIS RECIPE!
Enter your email and I'll send the link straight to your inbox.
Watch out for more tasty treats coming your way too! Unsubscribe at any time.
Today I'm sharing my go-to method for making homemade applesauce. Perfect for using up lots of apples and way better than anything you can buy at the store. It is really easy to make and makes your house smell amazing as it simmers away!
It makes a great healthy snack for adults, toddlers or babies, and is wonderful for topping things like pancakes, waffles, oatmeal, yogurt, or French toast. You can also use it for baking. In fact there's a vegan applesauce cake coming up very soon so watch this space!
Prefer a sweeter, more heavily spiced, concentrated version? You will LOVE my apple butter recipes:
Mel x
Ingredients
Here is what you need at a glance, along with some important ingredient notes & substitution ideas:
- Apples - You can use any variety of apple that you enjoy. Obviously the better and more flavourful the apples, the better your applesauce will be, and a mix of apple varieties will make the best tasting, most balanced applesauce. If I had to suggest one apple that I like best for this it would be honeycrisp!
- Cinnamon - You can use cinnamon sticks or ground cinnamon.
- Water - A little bit of liquid is necessary to get things going. If you have some apple juice you could use that instead.
Optional extras - You can add some sugar if the apples you are using are particularly tart but this isn't usually necessary. A touch of vanilla extract is also really nice if you are using the applesauce for snacking, desserts, or toppings, and as always a tiny pinch of good quality salt (not table salt) makes everything better!
Let's Make Applesauce!
Can't wait to make it? The full printable recipe is below, but first, let me walk you through the steps to set you up for success in your kitchen. I recommend watching my recipe video if you're more of a visual learner:
1 - Peel, core, and chop the apples then add them to a pan with some cinnamon and water.
2 - Simmer until the apples are soft.
3 - Remove then cinnamon sticks, add any optional extras like vanilla or sugar, then puree the apples before transferring to containers for storage.
Recipe
Easy Homemade Applesauce
Author:WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Ingredients
- 5lb (2.3 kg) apples , about 15 medium-sized apples
- ½ cup (120 ml) water , or apple juice if you have it
- 1 to 2 sticks cinnamon , or half to 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
OPTIONAL (do not add sugar or salt if feeding to babies)
- 1½ teaspoon vanilla extract , add after cooking
- sugar , to taste
- a small pinch fine sea salt
INSTRUCTIONS
- Prepare the apples. You can peel them or leave the peel on for more fibre and colour. If using a high speed blender to puree it you can't detect the peel at all. If this recipe is intended to be used as baby food then you need to peel them.
- Core and roughly slice or chop the apples then add to a large saucepan. Pour in the water and add the cinnamon. Adjust the cinnamon depending on how present you want the flavour to be.
- Cook the apples. Cover with a lid, bring to a simmer, and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 30 minutes, or until very soft.
- Turn off the heat and let cool slightly so it's not scalding hot, then add the optional vanilla, and taste to see if you need to add a little sugar. This isn't usually necessary unless the apples are particularly tart, and don't add sugar if this is intended to be used as baby food.
- Puree the apples. Use a potato masher, food processor, immersion blender, or highspeed blender to puree the apple to the consistency you like/need. Choose your tool depending on the consistency you like. For instance a potato masher will make chunky applesauce whereas a highspeed blender will make very smooth apple sauce, and an immersion blender or food processor will be somewhere in between.
Instant Pot Instructions (6 quart or larger)
- Add apples, water, and cinnamon to your Instant Pot and cook on high pressure for 5 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally then use an immersion blender or potato masher in the pot to mash/blend the apples to the consistency you like. Add any optional vanilla or sugar to taste.
Slow Cooker Instructions
- Add apples, water, and cinnamon to your slow cooker. Cook on low for 4 to 5 hours. Use an immersion blender or potato masher in the pot to mash/blend the apples to the consistency you like. Add any optional vanilla or sugar to taste.
NOTES
💌 SAVE THIS RECIPE!
Enter your email and I'll send the link straight to your inbox.
Watch out for more tasty treats coming your way too! Unsubscribe at any time.
Comments
No Comments