Thursday, October 23, 2008

I Think I Can...Can Applesauce!


I thought I'd share a few pictures of my applesauce-making with you.

We got 2 bushels of seconds when we were in the mountains several weeks ago. These are perfect for applesauce because we grind it all up anyways. Who care what the apples looked like?

I don't peel my apples for applesauce. Not only do the peelings add fiber but I think they give a better flavor and definitely a nicer color. I had several different varieties of cooking apples to use and I could tell which batches had more of the red apples because the color was slightly pinker! After cranking the apples through the Foley Mill, you cannot tell that some of the peelings got through as well.

Canning applesauce isn't hard to do but does take some time. I consider it well worth the effort. Homemade is so much better than the store-bought! And the house smells so yummy!

I had our dinner(White Chicken Chili) cooking in the crock pot that you see in the picture above. That turned out great; I was too tired to cook once I finished and there was apple peelings and stickiness everywhere!

My reward for an afternoon of work! Sixteen quart of applesauce plus I made an extra batch to eat fresh. I still have almost a bushel of apples left and I'd like to have at least 20 quart in all. ( Last year, I canned only 10 quart and we had it all eaten by February!)

I'd also like to make a batch or two of apple butter and also try drying some apples if I can get to it yet this fall!

4 comments:

Wendi said...

We enjoy making our own applesauce also. I also saved some for us to eat now. Megan asked for a second helping for lunch today. I just love seeing all of those jars lined up and ready!

Mattityahu said...

Hey Mary Ann,

Mom told me that she really loved your experimental apple sauce. :)

*carrie* said...

Great photos! Your apron is darling.

Lines From The Vine said...

Yum! Those are so beautiful...your family will certainly enjoy your efforts in the coming months!