In Britain, you can't get large jars of applesauce to eat as a snack, it's only available in small jars to use as a condiment alongside meats, usually pork. The applesauce in the small jars are much more sugary than American-style applesauce so negates the positive healthy aspects of eating apples. So I decided to make applesauce from scratch. It's super easy and the way The Economist eats applesauce, it disappears in a matter of hours, if not minutes. This time I made a ton, so it lasted a few days. I'm also considering making baked goods using applesauce in place of oil or butter, I'm told it works well. We shall see about that.
You're going to need apples of course. I used two different kinds; usually we use whatever we have laying around getting mealy.
Peel, core and chop the apples and toss in a pot with enough water just to cover. Bring to the boil and then simmer gently for about half an hour.
The apples will be cooked, but not yet broken down. To turn this into applesauce, cool and do one of the following: mash with potato masher; blitz in a food processor; pass through a food mill or potato ricer.
I did this with a potato masher. It gives a chunky texture. Next time I'm going to use the food processor.
I threw in a tiny bit of sugar. Usually it doesn't need sugar, but these apples were particularly tart. Finally, add some cinnamon to make it even more thoroughly apple-y. Best eaten cold.
