Apples, Apples, Apples....

What could be more fun on the first day of Fall than apple picking?! Well...we ended up with way more than I anticipated (mostly thanks to one little pair of hands ;0) 35 lbs.total to be exact!! That's alot of apples!! I have literally been cooking with apples for the past 5 days and STILL have a paper grocery sack full left.
Saturday I made baked apples in the slow cooker. Delish...especially with vanilla ice cream!

1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup walnuts, chopped
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon cinnamon
4 apples (I used Fuji)
1/2 cup apple juice or apple cider
Preheat a large crock-pot on high heat. In a large bowl, mix brown sugar, walnuts,butter, and cinnamon. Fill the apples with the filling and place them in the crock-pot. Pour in the apple juice or cider.  Cover and cook 2 1/2 to 3 hours on high heat until the apples are soft and begin to collapse. Be careful not to over cook...they will explode!

We've ate our fair share of apples the last few days as well! (I've been finding lots of half eaten apples throughout the house.)

Monday I made Apple Butter. I like apple butter that is thick and full of spice so this was an all day process.
I used 11 Fuji apples, peeled & cored

1 1/2 cups white sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (I used Pampered Chef Cinnamon Plus...this stuff is fabulous!)

Place the apples in a slow cooker. In a medium bowl, mix the sugar and cinnamon. Pour the mixture over the apples in the slow cooker and mix well. Cover and cook on high 1 hour. Reduce heat to low and cook 8 to 10 hours, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is thickened and dark brown. The longer you cook it the thicker it becomes. To test, take a spoon full out and let sit for a few minutes. Uncover and continue cooking on low 1 hour. Stir with a whisk or masher, if desired, to increase smoothness. Spoon the mixture into sterile containers, cover and refrigerate or freeze.

                Today we made Caramel Apples. M&M's and butterscotch chips were the preferred topping of choice.

And at an attempt to dwindle our apple supply I made homemade applesauce today as well. I definately need to invest in a peeler corer stand for next year! I started with 12 apples peeled and cored (again using Fuji apples). You will also need brown sugar, cinnamon (Pamperd Chef Cinnamon Plus!) and water.

Finely chop the apples. Smaller you dice them the easier it will be to get smooth applesauce.

Add the diced apples, 2/3 cup water, 3/4 cup brown sugar and 2 teaspoons Cinnamon Plus

Cook on high for about 2 hours then reduce to low. Let it slowcook for about 6 or 7 hours, stirring occasionally.

When the apples have softened enough, mash them up. I used my Pamperd Chef pastry blender. You may have to mash for awhile to get the consistancy you want.

After it has cooled a bit, jar it up and freeze it or refridgerate it or enjoy warm! This is about the amount of applesauce it makes. Enjoy!!

Avoid fruit and nuts. You are what you eat. ~Jim Davis