Applesauce

A few apple trees, and 90 pounds of apples later, I have 38 jars of applesauce!

I make plain applesauce.  I don't add anything to it.  No cinnamon, no lemon juice, no sugar.  Nothing but apples and some water (or the pot will scorch).  I find plain applesauce more versatile.  I can always add flavourings if I need to and I can use this applesauce in other things without adding other flavours.  I also don't peel or core my apples.  I use a food mill to hold back the undesirable parts of the apple.

I start with quartering the apples into a large stock pot and adding about 1 litre of water.

I bring it up to a simmer over medium heat and then turn it down to low.  Any higher of a heat and you risk scorching the apples.  And, you cannot get that taste out.  Yuck.  After about 20-30 minutes, with some occasional stirring, the apples will be nice and mushy.

Off the heat and into the food mill.  As mentioned above, the food mill will keep behind any undesirable parts of the apples.  This is what's left behind:

And this is the yummy part:

What's really nice about using the food mill is the incredible lack of waste.  After 90 pounds of apples, I'm left with one bowlful of apple waste (about 10 pounds) and 38 jars of applesauce.

That's it.  The food mill is incredibly efficient and maximizes your output.  Pretty awesome, huh?

Oh, yeah, I processed the jars in a boiling water bath for 25 minutes because I'm at elevation (20 minutes if you aren't).