Homemade Cinnamon Applesauce

Making homemade applesauce seems a bit daunting, right?  Wrong!  So easy!  And it will make your house smell absolutely heavenly. 

This recipe is adapted from the Pioneer Woman and I basically halved her recipe (it can be very easily doubled).  My husband loves Red Delicious apples, so that's what I usually buy and that's what I used.  We had 3 sitting around just waiting to go bad so that's all that I wrote the recipe for.  

The hardest (and most tedious) part is peeling and slicing the apples.  Then, everything goes into one pot, it stews for about 25 minutes and gets mashed up (or pureed).  Nothing to it!  

I used my potato masher, but at that point, the apples were so soft that a fork would have done the trick as well.  If you want a smoother consistency, just throw the cooked apples into your food processor and puree until you get the consistency you like.  Did I mention that while on the stove your house will smell so good??  Another added benefit to making this!

Serves 6

Homemade Cinnamon Applesauce

3 medium apples, peeled, cored and sliced
1/2 cup water
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Combine all the ingredients in a large pot and cook over medium heat for about 25 minutes.  Use a potato masher or fork for a chunky consistency or a food processor to puree the applesauce.

Store in the fridge in an airtight container.

(Source:  Adapted from The Pioneer Woman)