Last February apples went for 10 cents a pound at Superstition Ranch market. My friend Mindy and I had planned on doing applesauce last fall, but apples never went cheaper than 50 cents a pound. Between the high price and the end of my pregnancy, we decided to wait til this next fall to do it. When we found out it was 10 cents a pound, we couldn't pass the opportunity and decided spontaneously to make applesauce. Mindy has this cool contraption that you feed boiled apples into and then it churns out applesauce. We were bad at documenting the steps of each of our canning adventures and this time we decided we would take pictures of each step so we would have a reference for next time.
Facts about our applesauce making:
Qty/Type of Apples used: Honey Crisp, with a few Jonagold and Pink Lady, 180 lbs
Yield: 54 quarts applesauce (3.33 lbs apples used per quart)
Time started: 9:30 a.m.
Time last batch in the water bath: 7:30 p.m. * took breaks for lunch and dinner
1. Cut apples in halves or fourths.
2. Boil apples until soft enough to go in the applesauce contraption.
3. Push apples through this lovely contraption (I should look up and see what it's called). Here is Kevin helping a little when he got home from work.
This is what it looks like when it comes out.
4. Add salt, nutmeg, cinnamon, lemon juice, and sugar. See recipe for cinnamon applesauce (2 of these green bowls made enough to fill 3 quarts.
Recipe for cinnamon applesauce. We also made plain applesauce - just omit the cinnamon and nutmeg.
The finished applesauce
5. Heat applesauce in big pot, then fill quart or pint jars leaving 1/2 inch headspace.
6. Process applesauce in water bath canner for 25 minutes. Remove from canner promptly and let cool on countertop.
Mindy's applesauce: 27 quarts
My side of the countertop: I ended up with 40 pints and 7 quarts.
Kevin LOVES applesauce and he's been eating an average of 5 pints a week since I made it. No exaggeration. I told him to lay off the applesauce, but it is too good NOT to eat. So he's in heaven that he has all this applesauce to eat right after he gets home from work. Hope there is some left when Kaden-Zane can eat it.
4 comments:
Way to go, Rinna! You made tons! It looks beautiful and sounds like it tastes heavenly.
That gadget is a fruit/vegetable strainer. This year I bought one as a KitchenAid attachment. It is sweet! (get the strainer as well as the food tray if you have a KitchenAid mixer)
You can see it on my Favorites - gadgets page:
http://astore.amazon.com/jennlund-20/detail/B00004SGFK
You are so ambitious. I love it!
I was thinking it was a strainer, but that was too simple of a word to describe the thing :)LOL! :) Thanks! Oh and the link, thank you for that - it looks so cool - I will have to put that one on my wish list. :)
Look at you go! I love making and eating applesauce- My mom has a strainer and it was one of my favorite things to use growing up... Afton loves her applesauce!
sounds like you will have to make MORE at the rate Kevin is going at it. :)
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