Applesauce

Whereas my grandmother canned everything from the garden and orchard, two of the few things my mother canned were applesauce and apple butter. Both were really good, but too sweet for my tastebuds, even as a teenager. I've always liked fruit to taste like fruit. These days, I want fruit products with no chemical additives. The best way to achieve this is to process my own.

Having obtained a very small amount of apples, I cored and sliced them, cooked them in the roaster, then ran them through a food mill to remove the peels. Once the apples were milled, I added the juice of one lemon so the applesauce would retain its color and one cup of sugar to add a hint of sweetness. I'm sure when the spousal unit eats his serving, he'll add more. Adding extra sugar and salt is something he's learned to deal with over the years. 

I think next time, if I have a larger amount of apples to process, I'll use the Kitchen Aid to peel the apples and toss them in the Ninja blended after they've cooked. Using the food mill on a large batch would be tiresome.

Applesauce is something that can be processed using a water bath. It's rather straightforward. To follow in my foremother's footsteps, one would core and peel a bushel of apples, boil them down to a mush, drain off the excess liquid, add copious amounts of sugar, and water bath for twenty minutes. 

I had about nine pounds of apples which yielded nine half-pint jars of applesauce. If I'm gifted with more apples, I'll make some apple butter. 

Eating food we've preserved is going to become a bigger part of our eating here on the manor. We both want to cut down on food additives, and for us, this is the best way to do that. Buying organic applesauce would be fine, but having learned a lot of the "old ways" from my grandmother, those are the ways I want to practice. 

For me, it's coming full circle and coming home. 

The Lady of Holly Tree Manor