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If the UK has so many apple varieties that they want to save but are not supermarketable, then why not make applesauce out of them? I’ve never understood why applesauce is sold in such tiny jars in England. In the States, a typical jar of applesauce (pictured) is 25 ounces / 1 lb 9 oz / 708 grams or about 1 quart’s worth (that’s not imperial quarts, mind). The large jar weighs 50 oz / 3 bl 2 oz / 1.41 kg. And it’s not eaten by the spoonful as a condiment but by the bowl full like real fruit.
So in England, if you want to eat applesauce by the bowlful, then make your own. You don’t have to use Bramley apples but any kind will do, and it’s dead easy. And if you want all the healthy stuff in them (eating an apple a day is now scientifically proven to be healthwise), leave the skins on.
• core and cut up four larger apples into bitesize pieces
• boil them in an inch of water in a saucepan until soft, about 10 minutes (or longer if quite runny in order to boil off some of the fluid)
• remove from heat and mash up with a potato masher
• stir in ¼ cup of sugar and cinnamon to taste
Voila! You have made applesauce! Now, if everyone used UK apples in all their knobbly, blemished varieties to make applesauce, we would really be helping to keep our apple diversity alive. Then if the companies would follow suit and made larger jars of UK applesauce, we would really be on a roll.
Of course, with a big enough pot you could double or triple or whatever the number of apples.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much! I have a muffin recipe that calls for unsweetened applesauce and this recipe was perfect - so easy! I had 3 apples and it made just over 1 cup of applesauce.
ReplyDeleteThis post made me chuckle, I think I'm finally starting to understand American applesauce. In the UK we call it stewed apple when we eat it by the bowlful and it would never occur to us to buy it instead of making it, so I guess there is just no market for the big jars.
ReplyDeleteYou can buy it in every supermarket in Germany, and I also always wondered why it isn't sold over here. Maybe you can get it in Lidl, after all it's a German store....
ReplyDeleteIf you "want all the healthy stuff in them"... just eat the apples raw, skins and all, preserving the nutrient content without adding the extra sugar! Delicious!
ReplyDeleteClever stuff! only thing wrong is this...adding sugar to the apples and boiling them destroys the healthy part. I expect preservatives go into the huge jars they use in the states! However, I was just inspired to make my own version of applesauce for a Canadien carrot cake recipe...apples pureed with some chopped soft fruit I had left over in the fridge, pineapple and mango, perfect! Larger amounts could be preserved in the freezer.
ReplyDeleteFollowing an American diet currently and applesauce was recommended as an alternative to bananas which I hate. Thought I would look it up and couldn't believe it is just stewed apple, why on earth do you buy it in jars! Preserve the apples yourself, freeze or in jars. We've been doing this for centuries
ReplyDeleteI forgot to say the little jars of apple sauce you see here are because in this country apple sauce is for serving with roast pork
DeleteIt seems strange though to see apple sauce written as one word. Is that the same in the USA for all sauces?
ReplyDeleteI can see most people commenting here must not be American to understand the differences....The apple sauce in the UK is kind of tart and jelly like almost consistency and always seems to have some graininess to them. I have not tried stewed or boiled apples before, but now that I have this recipe to figure out the complete process, I will be doing this myself. And I think I will stay away from the Bramley. If I want tart, I use Granny Smith. Americans don't make their own applesauce because of several factors. 1 is that we don't have apple orchards everywhere, nor in our gardens very often. If we buy fresh from the shops, we eat them fresh and raw, so they generally don't go to waste. We don't buy extra apples just to make something we can get rather cheaply at any store. And the main reason is pure laziness. General consensus has always been....Why do for ourselves when we can get it cheaply elsewhere. Time is also a contributing factor. Americans work themselves to death in comparison to most of Europe. 2 weeks holiday if you are lucky per year....Doesn't leave much energy....
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