Today is applesauce making day here, after a road trip earlier in the week to Reid’s Orchard just across the river in Owensboro KY. We brought back one and a half pecks of apples, three varieties in all: Fuji, Golden Delicious and Winesap. We’ll use these apples for sauce, drying, baking, making apple leather, and just plain eating. We made a trip to the orchard a few weeks earlier and came back with four other varieties that are already eaten and processed.
When we bought it three years ago, Happy Acres came complete with four overgrown and untended apple trees. After attempts to prune them into shape, we have decided to throw in the loppers (so to speak) and buy apples instead. We may decide to plant a few dwarf apple trees someday, but for right now our plates are full enough without adding anything else.
30 foot tall Red Delicious apple tree
When my mom was alive I could count on her to make enough applesauce to keep me supplied, but now that she’s gone I’ve had to learn to make my own. Mom liked to make it with early apples like Lodi or Yellow Transparent, when she could find them. Many others swear by Macintosh for making sauce. Me? I’m going to use what I’ve got, and today that’s the three varieties mentioned above.
apples cooking down
We occasionally use applesauce in recipes that call for it unsweetened, so what I’m making is going to be only very lightly sweetened. I’ll freeze it in one cup containers for use all winter. If I want more sweetness when eating the sauce I’ll add a little sweetener, or maybe top it with some granola for a bit of crunch.
basic applesauce
This is a good recipe for making a small batch of applesauce. Peeled, chopped apples are simmered until soft, then mashed up into a chunky sauce. It can easily be doubled or tripled to make more.
Basic Applesauce 
Adapted from various recipes
5 cup apples, peeled cored and chopped (about 2 pounds)
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp ascorbic acid mix (like Fruit Fresh)
1 cinnamon stick, 2 inches long
1 dash salt
1. Combine first 5 ingredients in a large saucepan; bring to a boil.
2. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 35 minutes or until soft. Discard cinnamon stick.
3. Mash with a potato masher to desired consistancy. Stir in salt.
Servings: 5
Yield: 2-1/2 cups
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition (per serving): 99 calories, 2 calories from fat, <1g total fat, 0mg cholesterol, 9mg sodium, 103mg potassium, 26.5g carbohydrates, 2.9g fiber, 21.2g sugar, <1g protein, 39.7mg calcium, <1g saturated fat.