I have the perfect Fall apple recipe for you today. Crock Pot Applesauce is one of my favorite ways to use crisp sweet fall apples.
Homemade applesauce is easy to make. If you can slice apples you can make it.
I can't think of a better way to enjoy the tart, sweet and crisp flavor of fresh apples when it is so easy to turn them into homemade Crock Pot Applesauce.
Homemade applesauce is seriously the easiest crock pot recipe you will ever make! Instant Pot Applesauce is just as easy and it done so much faster.
Homemade applesauce is delicious as a side dish with a pork roast. When I make a batch I love to use it as an ingredients in some of my favorite recipes. I use it to make my 2 Ingredient Apple Spice Cupcakes. It makes my Apple Cinnamon Breakfast Cookies moist and tender. Or you can make easy Applesauce Fritters for a sweet snack.
Which is your favorite fall flavor? Pumpkin Spice or fresh apples?
Are you crazy for the flavor of pumpkin spice or apples during the fall?
I can't live without my Pumpkin Spice iced coffee during the Fall but I love, love! the flavor of Extra Fancy Gala apples.
I used to love Granny Smith Apples the best but I have since fallen in love with the sweet tart flavor of Extra Fancy Gala Apples.
Fall Apple Season
I am so jealous of everyone who lives in apple country. I would love to be able to go out picking apples and bring them home to enjoy. I know you all have a bunch of local and heirloom apple varieties that I will never see down here in Florida.
Those of you who are lucky enough to live in apple country will be able to make this crock pot applesauce recipe with the different varieties of apples that are available to you.
You'll be able to experience flavors of apple sauce I will never have the chance to taste. So make this homemade recipe a couple of times with a different variety of apple until you find your favorite.
I'm happy with my homemade Gala applesauce and will probably make it a few more time this fall.
I also made some homemade apple cinnamon fruit rollsups. The kids love them. You can check out the Cinnamon Apple Fruit Rollup recipe here.
Recipe Prep
- Prepare the apples: Peel, core and slice the apples.
- Pretreat the apples: To prevent the apples from browning you will need to pretreat them with lemon juice or a citric acid fruit browning product like Fruit Fresh.
Equipment
- Fruit peeler or Apple peeler
- 4 or 6-quart crock pot
- large mixing bowl
- potato masher or stick blender
Ingredients
- 10 cups very thinly sliced apple pieces
- ¼ cup water
- Ball Fresh Fruit or lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar (optional)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
How to make Crock Pot Applesauce
Crock Pot Applesauce is very easy to make. If you have a bunch of apples that need to be used up homemade applesauce is a delicious apple recipe to make.
- Peel, core, slice or chop the apples up. Make sure you use something to keep the peeled apples from browning while you prepare them.
- Keep the apple pieces from browning. I like to add a couple of tablespoon of lemon juice to a bowl and as I peel and slice the apples I toss the pieces into the bowl and swish the pieces around to cover them with the lemon juice. You can do the same thing with fruit fresh.
- Cook the apples until they are soft. Put the sliced apples, a bit of sugar, ground cinnamon and about ¼ cup of water into a crock pot. Cook the apples until they are soft enough to mash.
- Process the cooked apples into applesauce. Use a metal potato masher to crush the cooked apple pieces and make a chunky applesauce or pulsed the cooked apples in a blender to make smooth applesauce.
How to stop apples from browning?
Any citrus juice will stop apples from browning when you peel and cut them. Some apple varieties brown much faster than others.
When cutting apples for this Crock Pot Applesauce recipe or any other apple recipe add some lemon, lime or even pineapple juice to the bowl.
As you add more sliced or apple chunks to the bowl give the apples a stir so all sides of the apple pieces are covered in the citrus juice.
Fruit Fresh Produce Protector
As I mentioned above citrus juice will prevent apples from browning but if you want to avoid adding the lemon flavor to your recipe I recommend using Ball Fruit Fresh Produce Protector.
I love this stuff! It does not add any flavor to the fruit but it will keep apples from browning like magic.
Use it when making a fruit salad and the beautiful bright colors of the fruit will stay vibrant.
You will find it near the canning supplies in most grocery and big box stores. Or you can order it on Amazon.
FAQ
I used my tall and round 4 quart Crock Pot to make this Crock Pot Applesauce. 10 cups of sliced apples fit perfectly and cooked down perfectly.
When cooking crock pot applesauce on low it will take 8 to 10 hours to make applesauce.
Place the homemade applesauce in an airtight container and refrigerate.
Properly stored and refrigerated homemade applesauce will last one week in the refrigerator.
Recipe Expert Tips
- I turned the crock pot on low before I went to bed and when I woke up in the morning I had 2 quarts of the prettiest apple sauce you could ever imagine.
- The Extra Fancy Gala Apples turned the applesauce into a beautiful reddish color.
- The color of your applesauce will depend on the variety of apples you use.
More Apple Recipes
Email questions or recipe requests to flouronmyface@gmail.com. Follow me on Pinterest, YouTube, Instagram and Facebook.
Crock Pot Applesauce
Ingredients
- 10 cups very thinly sliced apple pieces
- ¼ cup water
- Ball Fresh Fruit or lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons sugar (optional)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Prepare a large bowl by combining 2 teaspoons Ball Fruit Fresh with 3 tablespoons of cool water. Mix well and pour into the bowl.
- Core, peel and slice the apples thinly. Place the apple slices from each apple as you slice it into the bowl and toss with the Fruit Fresh and water to prevent browning.
- Once all the apples are sliced measure them into a 4 quart crock pot.
- Add the water, cinnamon and sugar if using.
- Cook on low for 8 hours or until the apples are very soft.
- Mash with a potato masher to breakup any large pieces of cooked apple for chunky applesauce. Process in a blender or use a stick blender to make smooth applesauce.
Megan @ C'mon Get Crafty
We went apple picking for the first time this year, and I seriously considered making applesauce! My hubby demanded pie, lol. Thanks for the awesome recipe! #MM
Jamie
That looks yummy! I definitely want to try this this year! 🙂 Thank you for sharing your post with us at the #HomeMattersParty
Arlene Mobley
Jamie
Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy the recipe!
Shirley Wood
Your recipe sounds good. I've made Crockpot Apple Butter which was really good. I need to try this! Thanks for sharing with us at Merry Monday. Pinning.
Arlene Mobley
Shirley
You should try it. I haven't made apple butter yet but need to.
Leslie
This looks sooo good! I'm going to have to make this with my kids!
Arlene Mobley
Leslie your kids are going to be amazed! Thank you!
Veena Azmanov
This looks so easy and amazing. Can't wait to try it.
Arlene Mobley
Veena
I hope you enjoy the recipe!
Sarah @ The Fit Cookie
I love how easy this is and not too much added sugar! I'll have to make some of this for my kids 🙂
Arlene Mobley
Sarah
Thanks for stopping by! Kids love apple sauce and they will get a kick out of watching you make it at home. You could even leave out the sugar all together if the apples are sweet enough.
Joann
Hi Arlene, This looks delicious. I can't wait to try this. I do have a few questions though. 1) What type of Apples did you use? I have some Golden Delicious. 2) About how many apples did you use to get 10 c.. 3) I have a 6 qt. crock pot will that work for this? Thanks for any help you can give me. Keep up the good work, your doing a great job. 🙂
Arlene Mobley
Hi Joann
A 6 quart crock pot will work but the cooking time may be shorter. I used one full 4 pound bag plus 4 Gala apples. Golden Delicious apples are a little bigger than Gala apples so you probably won't need as many. Crock Pot Apple Sauce is one of those recipes that can be made as large or small a batch if you like. Just know that when the apples cook down you will end up with about half as much apple sauce as the amount of raw apples you start with.