Our homemade Cinnamon Applesauce can be eaten straight from the jar or paired with grilled pork chops or potato pancakes.
Applesauce Making Tips
- When making applesauce, it’s best to use a mixture of multiple types of apples, rather than just relying on one kind of apple. For example, mix McIntosh, Fuji, Liberty, and Jonathan apples. See our best apples for making applesauce.
- If you plan to make applesauce often, invest in a apple corer/peeler to save a lot of work!
- Adding water or apple cider keeps the apples from sticking to the pot as they begin cooking.
- In our recipe, sugar is not necessary unless you want a sweeter sauce; we prefer to have you taste the sauce and add at a later stage. But if you find that you prefer sweetened sauce, you can add the sugar when you add the liquid and cinnamon stick.
Ingredients
8 assorted apples
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 cup apple cider or water
1 cinnamon stick (3 inches)
Optional: 1/2 cup granulated sugar or brown sugar
Optional: 2 tablespoons apple or pear brandy
Instructions
- Peel and core apples; cut into big chunks.
- In a medium-size saucepan on the stovetop, toss apples with lemon juice. Add liquid (cider or water) and the cinnamon stick; bring to a boil.
- Reduce to a simmer and cook until apples are tender about 20 minutes. Let cool 20 minutes. Discard cinnamon.
- Mash to the consistency you prefer. (If you want a smooth applesauce, puree using a blender or food processor.)
- Optional: Taste the sauce. If you want a sweeter sauce, return applesauce to pan. Stir in brown sugar and continue to cook, uncovered, until the applesauce thickens, about 10 minutes.
- Optional: Stir in brandy.
- Cool to room temperature; then cover and refrigerate.
Serve warm or cold!
How to store applesauce
- Store in refrigerator in airtight container up to 2 weeks.
- To freeze applesauce, cool completely and then put into quart or gallon sized freezer bags. Store it for up to 2 months. Do not refreeze the applesauce once you have thawed it.
- You may also can this applesauce to store in the pantry up to a year. See how to can applesauce.
