Did you know the only apple native to North America is the crab apple and they are actually members of the Rose family?
Apples go with fall as much as pumpkins and mums! We are still in full swing canning mode, furiously puttin’ up for winter and apples are in the queue!
I’ve yet to start growing apples here. I’m still looking for just the right variety for this area. Apple trees benefit from the cold and it simply doesn’t get that cold here but I will find it and I WILL grow some! Any one have any suggestions for a nice multipurpose apple that will grow well in northeastern North Carolina?
Applesauce, apple butter, dehydrated apples, apple cider vinegar, apple pie filling, apple jelly, apple scrap jelly, making homemade natural pectin, fermented apples, apple juice/cider, hard cider and freezing are a few ways people go about puttin’ up apples for the year.
Applesauce is an important “MUST HAVE” in our house. We often have it with dinner. We will put it in a pot on the stove to warm up while we eat and have it for dessert! The kids claim that I make the best applesauce in the world. It’s certainly the best they have ever had. It is definitely an up grade from store bought!
I remember a story my great grandmother would tell about how much she hated peeling and coring all of my great grandfathers apples from his trees to preserve. I was determined to NOT hate it. The first thing I looked up when I went to make applesauce the first time was whether or not I could make it without peeling. Well, good news folks! You can. I wonder what my great grandmother would say to how easy my applesauce processing is compared to what she used to do.
I won’t get into all the specifics of safe canning procedures in this post. I will at another time write a detailed post concerning how to can safely and will later create a link from this post. Until then, if you are a beginner and unfamiliar with canning, I encourage you to reach out to your local extension office for instruction or other trusted source.
So you have your pile of apples. Now what!?
Supplies Needed
Canning pot and canning accessories
Steamer
Lids and rings
Canning jars (pint or quart)
Lemon juice (optional)
Cinnamon
Ginger
Sugar (Only if you want. It’s not necessary to add sugar so feel free not to)
Apples (I used Gala apples)
(You will need about 21 pounds of apples for 7 quarts of applesauce, 13.5 pounds for 9 pints.)
Instructions
Before you get busy cutting up these apples, you have to get them all washed up!
Now remember, I said NO PEELING!
Just core your apples and chop them in pretty big chunks.
Fill up your steamer basket with apples and steam them for approx. 20 min.
If it is easily pierced with a fork, you’re good to go.
Now you want to take the apples and put them in a good blender (oh how I love my Vitamix! We’ve had ours for over 15 years and use it almost every day for one thing or another)
Blend in some cinnamon and some ginger to taste (don’t overdo the ginger) Be careful when blending hot apple chunks.
Add a little lemon juice (lemon juice isn’t necessary when canning apples but I enjoy it in there)
Sugar, if you want but really apples are sweet enough!
After its blended well, pour into a big pot.
If you have a smaller steamer, you may have to do a few batches steamed, blend in batches, and add them all together to a big pot as you go until you have the amount of applesauce desired to fill your jars.
At this point you will want to bring your applesauce to a boil in your big pot.
Turn it down some and simmer it for 20 min.
Don’t skip this step. When you blend your apples, there will be a lot of air in the applesauce. If you don’t let that simmer out, you will end up with siphoning in the canning process (ask me how I know). As it is, applesauce has a reputation for siphoning so anything I can do to minimize that is worth it to me.
After simmering for 20 min, you can get to the canning process.
Water-bath Canning (As mentioned before, in this post I will not get into the specifics of safe canning procedures. Please refer to your local extension office or trusted source for guidance.)
Ladle your applesauce into your sterilized jars, leaving 1/2 in. headspace.
Tap the jar on a potholder or towel a few good times to get air out of the applesauce.
Wipe your rims and finger tighten your lid/ring.
Fill your canning pot with jars and process for 15 min for pints and 20 min for quarts.
Carefully remove your jars and allow them to completely cool.
Check for a good seal once cooled.
I always store my home canned goods without the rings but you’re going to hear a ton of different answers depending on who you ask. That is a topic for another post.
Happy Homesteading!