Applesauce: Part 2

The applesauce saga continues!

Yesterday we left off with half cooked down apples. I finished cooking the apples (when they're soft and break apart easily) and then put the sauce through the food processor to get the chunks out.




I put it back on the stove to get hot and added cinnamon and a touch of nutmeg. I'm not sure how much cinnamon...just add what you are comfortable with.



I tasted the sauce, and it was a bit tart, so I added a cup of sugar just to take the edge off.



Then I got my canning supplies ready while the applesauce heated all the way. There's the funnel, jar lifter, lid lifter, tongs, and a clean rag. This stuff (minus the rag) comes in a kit sold in most farm supply stores (and even Wal-Mart).



On the stove, there's a small pan of water with the lids simmering, the huge canning pot with water boiling, and the pot of applesauce.



I'm not going to go into the basics of canning, because it's too much to type and there are other people who are WAY more knowledgeable than me. I'll just give ya a brief overview. So I filled hot jars (I put them in the dishwasher so they get nice and hot) with hot sauce. Leave about 1/2" of headspace.



Wipe the rim with a clean, wet rag before placing the lid on.



I had enough sauce to fill 7 quart jars, which is what the water bath canner holds. Perfect!



The jars get lowered into boiling water and processed for 20 minutes.



Then they come out and cool. I must have hard water. See the deposits on the jars?



I'll probably make more sauce and some applebutter sometime soon. We still have over half the apples!


P.S. Have you noticed my To-Do list on the right side of the blog? I've found I'm more motivated to do stuff now. I don't want you thinking I'm lazy, so I need to get to work crossing things off the list!!

P. P. S. I know I said I'd post the video of the apple peeler, but I lied. I'll try to get to it tomorrow!