Homemade Applesauce

way more delicious and less expensive than store-bought.

I think I’ve used this adjective about broccoli, but applesauce wins the title of “least sexy food ever”. No one is making applesauce for their hot date. But, just like many aspects of being a parent to small children, here we are. My kids consume a decent amount of the stuff. I said this in the reel that I posted, but I realize it’s not that hard to find high quality, even organic applesauce at the store. And there’s no sugar coating this fact: it’s a lot easier and faster to buy it than make mine. BUT if you’re into homemaking things because you want control over quality, freshness and less packaging, AND if you like saving money, consider mine. It’s pretty delicious- you might even say, after tasting it, that it’s mildly sexy.

Here’s How I Use It:

• Straight up as a snack for the kids. Either in a bowl or in reusable pouches. More on those pouches below.

• As a side to classic like pork chops, pirogies or potato pancakes. Delicious.

• A quick healthy-ish dessert. In the bottom of a small glass: crushed graham crackers (or any cookie) + apple sauce + homemade whipped cream sweetened with just maple syrup + a dusting of more crushed cookies.

• Stirring into plain full-fat Greek yogurt. When I have homemade applesauce in the fridge, this is happening every morning for every family member. I even load one of those pouches with the combination for the baby.

Reusable Pouches

I’m no purist, I buy plenty of the kid’s pouches. I do think they are incredibly wasteful and really pricey. But sometimes it’s that kind of week. These reusable pouches are a GREAT alternative. I’ve used them with both boys at various stages. When the baby is only eating purees it’s a great way to serve homemade baby food without spoon feeding (yeah, I’m that kind of lazy parent). It’s also a great way to travel with homemade baby food, even if you squeeze it out onto a little spoon. For my older son, I send these in his school lunch either with straight apple sauce, mixed with yogurt or if I’ve made some other kind of fruity puree like apple/peach/mango. The header here has a link to the ones that I have. They work really well, clean easily with a bottle brush and the colors are not too offensive to my eyes.

Homemade Apple Sauce

yields a big pot-full. enough for 2 jars and multiple pouches. feel free to halve the recipe.

Note: I use a lot of ground fennel seed in my cooking. If it’s a new spice for you, I encourage you to try it here. It’s not overpowering but the combination of apple and fennel is a winning one. You can grind fennel seeds a few ways: in a mortar and pestle, in an electric spice grinder, or in a handheld spice grinder. You can even buy “ground fennel” in some grocery stores that have a well stocked spice department. Last note: if you have a vitamix blender and plan to use it here, you could even leave the fennel whole because the blender is so powerful it will pulverize it for you.

• 6 pounds apples (any variety works)

• ½ cup pure maple syrup

• 2 tablespoons fennel seeds, coarsely ground (see notes)

• 1 heaping teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

• ¼ cup water

1. Peel and core all the apples. Cut them into cubes, roughly ½”. Put all the apples into a large dutch oven or other heavy bottomed pot. 

2. Add the maple syrup, water, fennel seeds, cinnamon, and salt. Stir well and place over medium high heat. Once you can hear the liquid start to simmer, turn the heat down to medium, cover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring often. The apples should be very soft. 

3. To puree you can use an immersion blender or a regular blender. The immersion blender will give you a smooth puree that has some small chunks and a blender will give you an even smoother texture. 

4. Store in jars or reusable pouches, in the refrigerator, for up to 1 week.