i promised all of you the recipe for my homemade applesauce that i made for our sixth annual latke party, and so here it is as an early christmas present! i have to start off with the disclaimer that i LOVE apples, but i am really not a huge fan of applesauce. there aren’t many things that i enjoy as much as a crispy, tart, and flavorful bite of apple. my dad used to take me apple tasting at the ucsc farm and garden when i was little, and taught me to really delight in the differences between apple varieties – kind of like wine tasting for all ages. now, i look forward to picking out all sorts of new and exciting varieties of apples (plus the old favorites) to eat and compare notes with mike on the sweetness, crispness, texture, bite, etc.
so why do i have such a dislike for applesauce if i love apples so much?? i think i have narrowed it down to three issues:
- i hate that i can’t decide if i want to chew the stuff or drink it. with apples, you obviously know you should chew them (hopefully that’s obvious), and with apple butter, you know just to spread it on something else that’s chewy (or eat it by the spoonful – i love it that much!). but applesauce walks the line between the two.
- applesauce is usually really really sweet, and i don’t want sweet applesauce – i want tart applesauce that still has a bite and reminiscence of the apple from whence it came.
- finally, and this is one that i might be alone on, store bought applesauce doesn’t normally have cinnamon in it, and i am a firm believer that applesauce should have cinnamon. without it, it’s just not worth it.
so ok, those are all of my issues with store bought/”regular” applesauce. but this applesauce recipe that i’m about to give you is amazing because it uses a combination of two tart apples – McIntoshes, which break down as they cook and give the applesauce some sauciness, and Granny Smiths, which stay pretty firm and retain a nice crisp bite. the recipe calls for just the right amount of sugar and cinnamon – so it’s sweetish but not overly sweet, and just spicy enough from the cinnamon to taste but not overwhelm the apples. so basically it rectifies all the issues i have with normal applesauce.
i am lucky enough to have received an apple corer/peeler/slicer for christmas a few years ago, which has really helped the whole process. my latest procedure is to use the device to core, peel, and slice the McIntosh apples, but only to peel the Granny Smiths, because i like big chunks of Granny Smiths in the sauce, and i find the slicer to slice just a little too thin. without the corer/peeler/slicer, the procedure took quit a bit longer, although it was still worth it. so i hope all of you enjoy this recipe, and have a merry holiday season!
chunky applesauce
(yields about 10 cups, which was more than enough for 30 latke eaters)
adapted from marthastewart.com
- 10 Granny Smith apples
- 15 McIntosh apples (about 1 pound)
- 5T earth balance margarine or butter
- 2½t ground cinnamon
- 15T (a little less than 1c) sugar, or more to taste
- 10T (a little less than 3/4c) water
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- peel, core, and cut apples into chunks
- melt earth balance margarine or butter in a (very) large saucepan over medium-low heat
- add apples, cinnamon, sugar, and water
- cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples are tender, about 20 minutes
- serve warm or chilled (i think warm is the best!)
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December 26th, 2008 at 8:48 am
I learned about making applesauce from my mom and grandmother. My grandmother would can small batches as the apples fell from her tree in the backyard. We only use apples–no sugar or anything else–probably this was the custom during the Depression. If something happened that the applesauce spoiled, you didn’t lose any sugar.
They also did NOT peel or core the apples. They just quartered them and then after they were cooked all mushy, ran them through a food colander. It’s a big cone with small holes and fits on a stand over a bowl. You use a wooden thing to go around the colander and force the apples through the holes, leaving behind the peel and seeds. Probably another Depression influence–don’t waste anything. Cinnamon might be added when served, but rarely any sugar. So there you have it, Caffee applesauce.
December 29th, 2008 at 8:34 pm
@ BB: i loved seeing the applesauce colander that your mom and grandmother used when we were visiting you this weekend! although the worms in my worm bin would probably not enjoy depression era applesauce as much as when you core and peel the apples (they got a TON of food out of it!), it’s good to remember what we take for granted in our non-depression era times.