Fall has my family craving one of our favorite recipes, homemade applesauce! I always thought that making this was so labor-intensive, but really, this is one of the easiest mix of ingredients to ever grace your kitchen, I promise.

Basically, you will need only 3 things to make this:

1. Crock-Pot – One of the best appliances to have year-round!
2. Apples- 6-12 fresh apples (depending on the size) peeled, cored, and roughly chopped.
3. Cinnamon- which is optional!

Lastly, add a little bit of water (about a cup). Put all these together, turn your crockpot on low and you are on your way to the best crockpot applesauce!

I love going to one of our local orchards to pick apples, but when this fun family activity provides more fruit than anyone can possibly eat, plus there tends to be a few dented or bruised selections on the bottom of the bag.

These make perfect cooking apples for easy apple butter or apple puffed pancakes. The best part about making applesauce in a crockpot is it's healthier and makes the house smell amazing!

Related recipes: Apple Cider Donuts, Dutch Baby Apple Pancake, Apple Ale Pulled Pork, Baked Pumpkin Donuts, Crockpot Loaded Baked Potato Soup

When visiting the local orchard, I tend to pick McIntosh for both Apple Pie and applesauce. I like how this variety breaks down when cooked leaving a nice sweet, yet tart finish.

You could mix in Cortland as well for a fresh flavor.

I would not use Red Delicious for this recipe because it will be very bitter. Red Delicious apples are perfect for snacking rather than baking or cooking. 

Making this fruit snack from scratch is really a treat. If you want to make it taste better, you can add a pinch of the following to bring that flavor up a notch! 

Try adding: 

• Cinnamon
• Allspice
• nutmeg – use freshly grated nutmeg for extra fresh flavor
• clove

After this has cooked and cooled, store homemade applesauce in an airtight container and place in the refrigerator for a week to 10 days. If you would like to keep it longer, consider placing it in a ziplock bag. 

Remove as much air as possible out of the bag before sealing and place it in the freezer for up to 3 months. 

I love making this dish because it is so easy! It is great to serve as a side dish or snack and also tastes great on top of pork chops or over our delicious potato pancake recipe! 

Other serving ideas: 

• Place on top of your muffin or cornbread.
• Place a nice dollop on a sausage.
• Use in place of oil or butter in cookies or quick bread.
• Stir into morning oatmeal. 

How will you serve your new recipe? 

If you make this dish, please let us know! Share on Instagram and tag @eatpicks and use hashtag #eatpicks. 

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