Daily Archives: September 26, 2016

 Before making the applesauce, clean your jars and have them ready.   I ran mine through the dishwasher.

You can use your old jar rings.   Put the new lids in water and let them soak while you prepare the apples

Wash the apples, but don’t  peel them.

Cut the apples in quarters, remove the core and cut each piece across the middle.  With about 1/4 cup of water in your hi-power (Vitamix) blender, add one quarter blender jar of raw apples.   Turn speed up and as soon as these are blended, keep adding more until the blender is full.   After the first blender of apples, you won’t need to add more water as there will be enough fluid left from the previous load.   These apples were from the neighbors trees which had not been cared for, so there were lots of spots to cut out.  And yes, this way does lose a bit more apple, but I don’t mind because it is quick, easy, and the chickens or compost can have the discards.

Using a canning funnel, pour just up to the bottom of the first ring.

Even if the rim looks clean, put your clean finger in water and run it around the rim to make sure the rim is clean,

Now put on the lid, then the ring.

When you have 7 jars, (pints or quarts) put them in the water bath canning kettle and bring to a rolling boil.   Turn down and keep boiling.   See there are bubbles in the water, not just on the lids.  Boil 15 minutes for pints and 20 for quarts.   If you are at a higher elevation, check with your extension agent.   OR you can make fewer jars and keep it in the refrigerator for up to a week.

At the end of this time, remove from the kettle and set on a towel until cool enough to loosen the lid and rinse the outside of the jar.   Then use a sharpie to write on the lid.  I put 10/16, because it is so close to the end of the month.    TERRIFIC!.  You are done without peeling a single apple or losing the nutrition in the skin.  Your applesauce will vary in color with the color of the apple skin.   If you desire, you could add cinnamon and/or sugar.

Below, I saved some of the applesauce and added honey and spices to it to make apple butter.  This I placed in my slow cooker.   It is a new recipe, so I will let you know how we like it.