Slow Cooker Spiced Applesauce
Homemade applesauce made easy in your slow cooker!
Homemade applesauce is currently my favorite thing about this fall. I’ve made it before, though perhaps it was with a different recipe, because this time around the process is blowing me away. It couldn’t be more simple, and the results are incredible.
It starts with a bunch of apples I picked up from the farmer’s market. I sliced them up, put them in my slow cooker on low, and then forgot about them! That’s one the best things about slow cookers, they do all the work and hours later you get to reap the benefits.
About 8 hours later I pureed the tender apples, spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves, in a food processor and passed it through a mesh strainer to remove the skins and seeds. (A food mill works great too, I just don’t have one.)
I’ve since made another batch without any spices and both are equally amazing. No sugar, no other ingredients. Just fresh, local, in-season apples!
Slow Cooker Spiced Applesauce
Ingredients
- 6 pounds apples , sliced into quarters (2.7 kg)
- ¾ cup water or apple juice (178 ml)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
Instructions
- Place the quartered apples and water/apple juice in a large slow cooker (16 quart or more). Cover and cook on "low" for 6-8 hours, stirring every hour or so. As the apples cook down they will shrink.
- During the last few hours of cooking, stir in the cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. When the apples are fully cooked, pass the mixture through a food mill to remove skins and seeds. Alternately, you can puree it in a food processor and pass it through a mesh strainer.
- Ladle the applesauce into sterilized jars, leaving ½ inch headspace. Cover with lids and screw on bands. Process in a waterbath for 15 minutes (pints) or 20 minutes (quarts).
- Let cool completely and make sure the jars are sealed before storing in a cool dark place, like a pantry.
Notes
NOTES
- If you'd rather a plain applesauce, feel free to omit the spices.
- If you don't want to process the applesauce, simply store it in the fridge and consume within a few weeks.
- If you have a small slow cooker, you can still make this recipe! Simply halve or quarter this recipe, as desired.
Love the idea of making your own applesauce at home, especially with all of the fresh apples everywhere!
I JUST made slow cooker applesauce (in my Hamilton Beach slow cooker!) last weekend! Soooo easy and so delicious! I peeled my apples first, but curious to try your method next time.
I’m sure yours was just as great! I’m just lazy. 🙂
I just made a fantastic beef stew in my slow cooker. I also like overnight oatmeal.
Hmmm… almost anything. Maybe chili :).
Oh, I could so use this. I’m still using a small crockpot that I received for our wedding, thirty-three years ago. I also have a bushel of apples that needs to be turned into applesauce. Would love to try them in a slow cooker.
That applesauce looks delicious! I love using my (small) crockpot, but I could sure use a bigger one! 🙂
Oh, forgot to answer the question – currently my favorite thing to make in the slow cooker is chicken & dumpling soup!
My favorite thing to make is sweet & sour shredded pork.
I like to make sauces and veggie stew in a slow cooker.
This recipe looks delish. I cannot wait to try it! My pregnant wife loves apples and she will love this treat. Any time I get o use the slow cooker I am a happy camper. Thank you!
My favorite think to make in the slow cooker is pulled pork.
I like to make chili
I make chili in a slow cooker all of the time!
It looks super delicious, I also need to make some applesauce for this season 😉
Yum!! My kids devour applesauce and so do I!! Can’t wait to try it!
Oh and my favorite dish in a crock pot is a roast with veggies.
I like to make pork (for tacos) in the slow cooker.
I like to make pork roasts in the crockpot. It can be used for so many different meals! Tacos, soup, as is with roasted veggies. The possibilities are endless.
Barbeque chicken legs! It is so easy!
I love making BBQ chicken and ribs in my slow cooker. Sadly its on its last leg so winning this would be amazing.
There are so many things I would love to try making in a slow cooker — chicken, beef or pork for tacos, roasts, etc.
I love to make shredded pork.
I love making soup in my slow cooker. I only have a small one. I could make more things if I had a larger one.
lesajm AT hotmail DOT com
I love making soups and chilis in the slow cooker, it’s so easy to throw everything in and just let it go all day
I love to make my slow cooker apple cobbler, especially this time of year!
I love making soup in the slow cooker.
My slow cooker gets used all the time. I make soups (italian chicken last night). Today I am making a pot roast. My only problem is I use an old one and it is too small. I would love this larger one! I have never made anything sweet in the crockpot.
I love my slow cooker! It used to live in the cupboard all the time until I got the hang of it and realized how many different things you can do in it and how flipping easy it is. Probably my favorite thing to make in mine is beans. Dried beans are so much cheaper (and less salty) than canned, and you just dump them in and go. No stirring, no boiling dry, no babysitting. Awesome.
I make shredded beef for sandwiches, baked beans for pot lucks, chicken, roasts, chili. . . Just about everything! Looking forward to trying the applesauce!
I’ve never used a slow cooker before! But I always see delicious slow-cooker recipes, like this one and caramel recipes
My kids love applesauce, so I can’t wait to try this recipe!
Veggie and beef stew.
My favorite thing to make in a slow cooker would be…. probably a roast and potatoes. yum!
Lasagna
Pulled meat (beef, pork or chicken) to use for BBQ sandwiches, tacos, soups, etc. So versatile and I love that I can drop it in the crockpot and come home to throw it in whatever for dinner.
I love making potato soup, all varieties. Chicken pot pie soup is fun too.
I usually make stews in my slow cooker or pulled pork but I LOVE that you made applesauce! how brilliant!! and I bet your kitchen smelled amazing! Love this!
I love to mull spiced wine in the crockpot
Oooh I love to do that too!
I love to cook Main Dishes in my crockpot. The idea of coming home, and dinner being ready, makes me smile!
This is great! I was just thinking about trying to make my own applesauce not even two days ago. Thank you for reading my mind! hehe
I like to make ranch chicken tacos
In my Slow Cooker, I love to make everything stew with all the left over, almost too old to eat fresh, veggies. Black beans are definitely a staple that I leave in the slow cooker all day. Kahlua pork! Yum
I use it most often to cook dry beans to freeze for later. But I love making apple cider in it at holiday time. The house smells so wonderful!
I’m going apple picking tomorrow– can’t wait to make my own apple sauce!
I love Crock Pot oatmeal!
I love making broccoli cheese soup in my crock pot.
I love to make loaded mashed potatoes in the slow cooker
I like to make chicken cacciatore.
Delighted to find this recipe! Thanks. My favorite meal to make in my slow cooker is Chicken Tortilla Soup. It has become a Christmas Eve tradition at our house!
I make a really good chili.
i love making apple sauce or pulled pork (not together though! lol)
A braised beef tail with carrots and taro.
Not exactly my favorite thing to fix in the crock pot but worth mentioning. I sometimes make baked potatoes in one and a topping in another. Both are dorm room sized. Ready to eat when I walk in the door.
I love to make pulled pork in the crockpot! So yummy and easy!
I like making chicken tacos.
This is my first year trying to make applesauce so looking for lots of ideas and definetly going to have to try this.
Love making filling for enchiladas in the slow cooker!
My fav thing is pot roast. 🙂
Either beef stew or veggie chili! Love your photos and blog! Thanks for the giveaway.
I love making stews and chilis. Thanks for the awesome giveaway 🙂
Renee
fattybumpkins at yahoo dot com
I love to make baked chicken . It has such a good moist flavor, with just a few seasonings & lots of time to cook.
All dinners! Especially chicken.
We don’t have a slow cooker, so we don’t have any favorites, but my grandma always used to make roasts and stews with one that I loved.
In your directions it says to use a 16 quart slow cooker – do you really have one of those? Where would you even get one?
This recipe is specifically for making applesauce in a slow cooker. You can certainly make applesauce without one – on the stovetop – but that would require different instructions. You should be able to buy a slow cooker at any department store or online. I’m partial to the Hamilton Beach brand, but there are lots of other great choices too. Hope this helps!
Thank you for the quick reply! I understand where to get a slow cooker 🙂 but I have a 3.5 qt, a 5 qt and a 6 qt. Where did you get a 16 quart slow cooker?
In Step 1 of your instructions: Place the quartered apples in a large slow cooker (16 quart or more). Cover and cook on “low” for 6-8 hours, stirring every hour or so. As the apples cook down they will shrink.
the first part of your recipe says to add apples to slow cooker and stir constantly but it doesn’t say anything about the water or apple juice. Does that go in first with the apples?
Hi Alex! I’m sorry for the confusion. The apples and liquid (water or apple juice) should be placed in the slow cooker at the same time. I’ve fixed the wording in the recipe.
This recipe is similiar to one I created. I don’t use a slow cooker-but will try it. I do peel and core the apples first. I also freeze it in small containers, since there is only 2 of us. This is a great recipe using no sugar for Diabetics.
We just slice the apples so that we don’t have the core or seeds to deal with, but don’t bother to take out the peel. We love applesauce a bit chunkier and with the peel in it! Originally, I used to blend and strain, or peel the apples first. I did this because of my kiddo. But then I realized that she will eat baked apple/peel and which isn’t any different than slightly mashed up (or slightly blended) apples with the peel on. So I made a batch without bothering to take out the peel and she loved it.