Homemade Applesauce (Two Ways)

Two ways to make McIntosh applesauce: the traditional way, cooked with skins and pressed through a Foley food mill, or the modern way in the microwave with cinnamon red hots.

Make-ahead

Allergens: none of the major food allergens in the ingredients as written. Check package labels, which can change.

From the recipe book of Sandra Mills, a Le Cordon Bleu-trained cook in our family.

Glass bowl of homemade pink applesauce with red apples and cinnamon sticks
  • Prep 20 min
  • Cook 25 min
  • Total 45 min
  • Yield About 1 quart

Updated

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Sandra Mills gives both the traditional and the modern way to make applesauce from McIntosh apples. The traditional way needs a Foley food mill, which lets you skip peeling: the apples simmer whole-sliced, seeds and all, and the mill presses out smooth sauce while leaving the skins behind.

The modern way peels and cores the apples and cooks them in a glass bowl in the microwave, then sweetens them with sugar and cinnamon red hot candies for a rosy color. The flavoring works with either method.

Ingredients

Traditional (Foley mill)

  • 3 pounds McIntosh apples
  • Sugar to taste (start with 1/2 cup)
  • Cinnamon to taste (start with 1 teaspoon)

Modern (microwave)

  • 3 pounds or more McIntosh apples
  • 1/2 cup or more sugar, to taste
  • 2 tablespoons cinnamon red hot candies, or more if desired

Instructions

  1. Traditional: cook. Wash and slice the apples; there is no need to peel or remove the seeds. Place in a pot with 1 1/2 to 2 inches of water, uncovered. Bring to a boil and simmer until soft and mushy.
  2. Traditional: mill. Drain the fluid with a slotted spoon. Put the apples into a Foley mill over a bowl, 2 spoonfuls at a time, and turn until the pulp is mashed. When the skins interfere, reverse the handle to clear them. Continue until all the apples are milled.
  3. Traditional: season. Add cinnamon and sugar to taste, starting with 1 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/2 cup sugar.
  4. Modern: cook. Peel, core and slice the apples, making sure no seeds remain. Place in a 4-quart glass bowl with a little water to line the bottom, or none if the apples are juicy. Cover with waxed paper or plastic wrap, leaving a small air space.
  5. Modern: microwave. Microwave on high for 10 minutes, stir, and continue cooking on high until the apples are soft but still lumpy; the time varies with the microwave.
  6. Modern: season. Stir in the red hots and sugar, adding more if desired.

Tips

  • Sweetness varies by apple, so always season to taste.
  • An apple wheel slices and cores in one push, as Sandra notes.

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