Homemade apple sauce is a favourite snack in our house! We use it for baking, cooking, and snacks. It is the perfect addition to a school lunch which feels like a treat.
I had an abundance of apples after one weekend of apple picking and apple sauce was my main priority the week after. Homemade apple sauce is so easy to make and to can, I honestly think apple sauce was my first thing to can!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Made with simple, wholesome ingredients: This applesauce contains only apples, with optional sweeteners and spices, making it a healthier alternative to store-bought versions that often contain preservatives or artificial flavors.
- Customizable to your taste: You can adjust the sweetness, leave it unsweetened, or add warm spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, or cloves for a cozy flavor. You can also choose to make it smooth or chunky, depending on your preference.
- A family-friendly recipe everyone will love: This applesauce is naturally sweet, making it a hit with both kids and adults. It’s a great way to introduce homemade, nutritious foods to picky eaters.
- Budget-friendly and cost-effective: Making applesauce from scratch is much cheaper than buying it from the store, especially when apples are in season or if you have access to fresh, homegrown apples.
Why choose Homemade over Store-Bought?
Less Waste: I can’t tell you how much money we have spent on store-bought apple sauce over the years. The cups, plastic containers, and squeeze tubes filled up our garbage/recycling and are such a waste! Plus I use every piece of the apples. I started canning this homemade apple juice recipe from the water the apples were boiled in, the cores and peels! No waste!
Local and Clean: We don’t know where the apples in store-bought apple sauce come from or how they were grown. Picking our own apples, washing, prepping, cooking, and canning give us a clear mind on what we are feeding to our family. I know where the apples came from, where they were grown, and how they were processed just by spending not even a full day making our own homemade apple sauce.
Teaches Sustainability: I am by no means a prepper but I do love the idea of being more self-sufficient. By learning how to grow, prep, process, and store your own food, you are a little closer to being less reliant on big box stores to provide you with your food.
Save Money: You will most certainly save money on making your homemade apple sauce with your own grown apples, but what about apples bought at a farmer’s market or orchard? Well, it is pretty close, with the cost of apples going up this year it actually broke even if I were to buy store-bought vs making our own. However, since I was able to figure out how to make our own homemade apple juice from the water and discards, we were actually able to SAVE MONEY.
It is my dream to one day have a small little orchard so I don’t have to worry about the math. But to be honest, even if it cost more to make our own homemade apple sauce I still would because it is so fun and rewarding.
Flavouring Homemade Apple Sauce
A big question when canning your own homemade apple sauce is can you make the flavours that the store-bought variety provides? And the short answer is, YES! We made a homemade strawberry apple sauce variety which came out delicious! You can try blueberry, raspberry and even banana! I would stick to tested recipes when it comes to adding in vegetables to ensure you maintain the proper acidity for canning.
Recipe Tips
No need to add water: Apples release their own juices as they cook, so only add a small amount of water if needed to prevent sticking.
Adjust sweetness to taste: Taste the applesauce before adding sweetener, as some apples are naturally sweet enough.
For chunkier applesauce: Pulse the apples in the food processor for a shorter time or use a potato masher instead.
Keep jars hot: Keeping the jars warm before filling helps prevent thermal shock and cracking.
Check seals after cooling: Press the center of each lid—if it pops up and down, the jar did not seal and should be refrigerated and used within a week.
What You Need:
- Apple Peeler
- Food Processor
- Canning Kit and Water Bath Canner
- Mason Jars and Lids
- Canning Funnel
- Stock Pot
Ingredients:
- 14 pounds apples
- 5 cups water
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- sugar (optional)
- cinnamon (optional)
How to Make Homemade Apple Sauce:
- Fill your stock pot just under halfway with water and bring to a boil. Start your water bathing canner at the same time to give time to boil.
- As your water is coming to a boil, wash, peel, core, and slice the apples. If you are using this peeler, it will basically do everything for you! I highly recommend it, it saves so much time!
- Add the cut and peeled apple slices to the boiling water.
- Cook the apples over medium-low heat to soften, about 20 to 30 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent burning. After the apples are soft, turn off the heat and let the apples cool.
- Strain out the apples with a slotted spoon or handheld sifter and place in a food processor.
- Run the food processor quickly for 10-20 seconds. Dump the processed apples in a large bowl. Repeat until all the apples have run through the food processor.
- Add your flavour and sweetener to the bowl of blended apples and stir.
Canning Applesauce:
- Wash your jars, lids, bands, and canning tools in hot soapy water, and rinse well. Set aside to air dry on a clean kitchen towel.
- Add your jars to the water bath canner. Bring the canner to a simmer (180˚F) for 10 minutes, and keep the jars hot until you are ready to fill them
- Lay a kitchen towel on the counter. Use your jar lifter to remove a jar from the canner, drain, and place it on the towel. Keep the remaining jars in the canner, so they stay hot.
- Using a ladle and funnel, add the applesauce to your warm jars leaving a 1/2-inch headspace.
- Wipe the rims of the jars with a clean, damp towel. Center a lid on the jar, and screw on the band until it is fingertip tight. Do NOT overtighten.
- Use the jar lifter to place the full jars back into the canner, and repeat with the remaining jars. Try to leave some space in between the jars.
- Once the jars are all in the canner, adjust the water level so it is at least two inches above the jar tops.
- Cover the canner and bring to boil over medium-high heat. Once the water boils continue boiling pints for 15 minutes at altitudes of less than 6,000 ft. Adjust processing time for your altitude if necessary (see notes).
- When the processing time is complete, turn off the heat, remove the cover, and let the canner cool down and settle for about 5 minutes.
- Lay a dry kitchen towel on the counter and begin removing the jars carefully from the canner, placing them on the towel. Leave about 1-inch in between jars. Keep the jars upright, and don’t tighten bands or check the seals yet. Let the jars sit undisturbed for 12 to 24 hours to cool completely.
- After the jars have cooled for at least 12 hours, check to be sure jar lids have sealed by pushing on the center of the lid. The lid should not pop up. If the lid pops up and down, it did not seal. Refrigerate the applesauce and use it within a week.
- Remove the bands and wash the jars well with warm soapy water to remove any residue. Label, date, and store in a cool, dark place. Use within 12 to 18 months. Refrigerate the applesauce once opened and consume it within a week.
More Apple Canning Recipe
Canning Homemade Apple Sauce
Equipment
- Stock Pot
- Water Bath Canner
- Apple peeler, corer, and slicer (optional)
- Slotted spoon or handheld sifter
- Food processor
- Large bowl
- Ladle and funnel
- Jars, lids, and bands
- Jar lifter
- Clean kitchen towels
- Damp cloth or paper towel
Ingredients
- 14 pounds apples
- 5 cups water
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- sugar optional
- cinnamon optional
Instructions
- Prepare the water bath canner and stock pot: Fill your stock pot just under halfway with water and bring to a boil. At the same time, start heating your water bath canner to give it time to reach a boil.
- Wash and prepare the apples: While the water is heating, wash, peel, core, and slice the apples. If using an apple peeler, this process will be much quicker.
- Cook the apples: Add the apple slices to the boiling water and cook over medium-low heat until soft, about 20 to 30 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent burning. Once the apples are soft, turn off the heat and let them cool slightly.
- Process the apples: Use a slotted spoon or handheld sifter to remove the softened apples from the pot and transfer them to a food processor. Process for 10 to 20 seconds until smooth. Transfer to a large bowl and repeat until all apples are processed.
- Add flavor and sweetener: Stir in your desired sweetener and any additional flavors to the blended applesauce.
- Prepare the jars and canning tools: Wash jars, lids, bands, and canning tools in hot, soapy water, then rinse well. Set them aside to air dry on a clean kitchen towel.
- Heat the jars: Place the jars in the water bath canner and bring the water to a simmer (180˚F) for 10 minutes to keep them hot until ready for filling.
- Fill the jars: Lay a kitchen towel on the counter. Using a jar lifter, remove one jar from the canner, drain, and place it on the towel. Keep the remaining jars in the canner so they stay warm. Use a ladle and funnel to fill each jar with applesauce, leaving 1/2-inch headspace.
- Seal the jars: Wipe the rims of the jars with a clean, damp towel. Center a lid on each jar and screw on the band until it is fingertip tight—do not overtighten.
- Process the jars: Use a jar lifter to place the filled jars back into the canner, ensuring they are spaced apart. Adjust the water level so it covers the jars by at least two inches. Cover the canner and bring the water to a rolling boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, process pint jars for 15 minutes at altitudes below 6,000 ft. Adjust processing time if needed based on altitude.
- Cool the jars: When processing is complete, turn off the heat, remove the canner lid, and let the jars sit in the canner for 5 minutes. Lay a dry kitchen towel on the counter and carefully remove the jars, placing them on the towel with at least 1 inch of space between them. Do not tighten bands or check seals yet. Let the jars cool undisturbed for 12 to 24 hours.
- Check the seals and store: After 12 hours, check that each lid has sealed by pressing the center. If the lid pops up and down, it has not sealed—refrigerate and use within a week. Remove the bands and wash the jars in warm, soapy water to remove any residue. Label, date, and store in a cool, dark place for up to 12 to 18 months. Refrigerate after opening and consume within a week.
