You bet! We live in Apple Country and one of the many local orchards, in December & January, mark the last of what they have in their cold storage, down to 25 cents a pound!! We have bumped most of our Apple canning and preserving to WINTER, rather than Fall, at that price! In our effort to stock our pantry on the cheap (and healthy!) this was an excellent deal– our children LOVE applesauce and my husband will even take pints in his lunchpail to work for his meals!
We recently drove out to the orchard and picked up about 125 pounds of a few different varieties; Granny Smith for pie filling, Red Delicious for just plain eating, and the variety of Golden Delicious that our favorite orchard grows is THE family favorite for applesauce!
All I do is peel, core and toss the pieces in my big 18 Q roaster (I add about 2 C of water too) on about 325 degrees and just let them cook down for a few hours, stirring every half hour or so and using a potato masher as well to get all chunks out. That’s IT. SIMPLE.
I have one child that loves a bit of cinnamon– so I add about 2 teaspoons into some batches. I can mine up in Quarts in our water bath canner at 20 minutes–it doesn’t get any easier, healthier or cheaper (’til we have more than one tree producing here at the ranch!).
When you find a local source of excellent produce or an amazing deal at your local store, think about how you can take advantage of a killer price and stock your pantry! In this economy we’ve taken to trying to buy ONLY the best deals, in bulk and thru local farmers. We’re finding it really helps the grocery budget…because as I am sure you’ve noticed, walking through the store with a traditional weekly grocery list is getting far too expensive!
Applesauce is so easy ( and frugal!) to put up in the pantry– ENJOY!
~Lisa
