I love using a mix of apples to make a great applesauce, to me the complexity of the flavor really benefits from a variety of apples. From a tangy Granny Smith, to a soft and juicy Empire, the apples are in season and better than ever. I've been making uge batches of applesauce to can and when I saw pears on sale - I had to give this combination a try and it worked like a charm, probably my best batch of sauce that I've made so far...and I've made 7 batches of sauce so far, each yielding about 6-10 pint jars canned.
For this batch, I used these varities of apples:
Rome, Empire, Granny Smith, Golden Delicious, Gala, HoneyCrisp, Jonathan, and McIntosh. I just buy the cheapest apples, preferrably the ones that look a little soft and I add in any snacking apples that have gotten too soft to snack on.
4 lbs. Barlett ($2.25)
8 lbs. apples ($3.35)
1-2 tsp. ground ginger ($.05)
2-3 T. cinnamon ($.75)
1-2 tsp. nutmeg ($.15)
2 C. water
1 C. sugar ($.15)
1 1/3 C. dark brown sugar ($.25)
Peel and core apples and pears, rough chop the fruit and add to a large stock pot. Add in water and spices, cook over medium heat for 20-30 minutes, until the apples and pears start to cook apart. Use a potato masher to help the apples breakdown into the sauce. Cook another 15-20 minutes over medium-low. Add sugars - 1/3 C. at a time, stirring in well.
Cook another 5 minutes and either cool for 30 minutes before transferring to an airtight container and chilling in the refrigerator or begin the canning process.
Yields about 7 pints.
Cost: $6.95
Cost per pint: $1.00
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