simple homemade applesauce

When I was in college, I watched Meg Ryan peel an apple from top to bottom without it breaking. The name of the movie escapes me (if anyone remembers, leave it in the comments below), but since that scene, every time I peel an apple, I try to do it in one long, satisfying spiral. Fortunately, as we find ourselves in the midst of fall/apple season/baking season, I’ve got all the opportunities to perfect this wonderfully useless exercise - particularly today, as I get ready to make the world’s most simple applesauce.

Since I don’t tend to gravitate toward applesauce when I get snacky, I just leave mine plain so that it can be used in a variety of dishes, both sweet and savory, but if you want to get fancy with yours, I’ll leave some ideas in the notes for you!

makes approximately one quart

8 apples, any variety or a mix
1/2 cup water
1 Tbs fresh lemon juice
1 pinch sea salt

1) Peel and roughly chop the apples into 1 to 2 inch pieces.
2) Place apples pieces, water, lemon juice, and salt in the bin of a slow cooker.
3) Cook on high for four hours.
4) Remove and mash with a potato masher, or for super smooth texture, puree in a high speed blender.
5) Transfer to an air tight container and either refrigerate for one week or freeze for three months.

notes: I mainly use applesauce as an ingredient in other dishes (namely my lentil loaf), so I keep it plain. If you want to get fancy, though, you could add a cinnamon stick, a couple of tablespoons of your favorite sweetener, and/or a teaspoon of quality vanilla extract to the pot before cooking.