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.
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.
Either beef stew or veggie chili! Love your photos and blog! Thanks for the giveaway.
My fav thing is pot roast. 🙂
Love making filling for enchiladas in the slow cooker!
This is my first year trying to make applesauce so looking for lots of ideas and definetly going to have to try this.
I like making chicken tacos.
I love to make pulled pork in the crockpot! So yummy and easy!
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.
A braised beef tail with carrots and taro.
i love making apple sauce or pulled pork (not together though! lol)
I make a really good chili.
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 like to make chicken cacciatore.
I love to make loaded mashed potatoes in the slow cooker
I love making broccoli cheese soup in my crock pot.