Roasted Cinnamon Applesauce, thick and chunky.

The final gossamer strands of summer are upon us as we delicately balance between two seasons. I always embrace Autumn with enthusiastic arms, enveloping myself in the welcome change of weather. In the excruciating heat of summer, I long for crisp, biting air, the warm spices of cinnamon and cloves, and my beloved Pumpkin Spice Latte. However, right on the cusp of the seasons shimmering from one to the next, I find myself fighting the urgency to hold onto the bright, fresh vegetables and fruits that are only found during these months. The anxiety of leaving summer is peculiarly overwhelming. I scramble to hoard the last of the summer berries and use them in something like this, and the lighter fare I have been finding so substantial and adore. Around me, I know others are swimming in similar limbo as I smell and hear the last of BBQ’s, celebrating the end of summer season which rapidly approaches. The scents of grilled pizzas, burgers, ribs and chicken mingle with that distinct tang of charcoal and propane as you stroll through the neighborhood , darting and weaving through impromptu soccer games in the little park beside our house.

In anticipation of the seasons changing, my husband and I trekked out to Apple Annie’s Orchard this past weekend. In addition to Apple Trees, they have a variety of other fruit trees, a pumpkin patch, and are known to host pancake breakfasts and hayrides. The also have some old school Apple Cider donuts that are made before your eyes, and you can burn your tongue on the piping hot donut as the sugar melts into a sticky glaze on your fingers. It is so much fun to daintily pick your way through the trees, gathering natures bounty. It becomes an even more brilliant adventure when your husband is the one carrying the apple bucket!! We ended up with about 17 pounds of apples, a mix of Golden Delicious, Braeburn, Granny Smith, and something completely new to me called a Rome Beauty. If you research different strains of apples, you would be quite entertained by some of the names that were chosen. Redlove, Little Limbertwig, Magnum Bonum, Adam’s Pearmain Apple, as well as one called the Bright Future Apple.

One of the reasons I was pleased to go Apple Picking (other than massive amounts of apples I was able to hunt and gather for myself) was that apples are an unbelievably great transitional food through the seasons. In summer, the 4th of July gets apple pie with its BBQ celebrations. In Autumn, pies are still abundant but you start seeing apples appear in more savory dishes, such as stuffings and with pork. One of my favorite ways to welcome Autumn is with homemade applesauce.

Sitting in a ridiculously large chair, cheering for apples bring in the Autumn months.

Applesauce is one of those foods that often gets overlooked. Store bought varieties are intensely sweet and have a very smooth, uniform texture. It’s a bit bland, a bit boring. It was often the overlooked portion of my lunchbox, the thing I did eat happily when we had pork for supper (I dislike pork, for the most part), or something that is used as a substitute for oil in baking. It is pretty blah in the bottled varieties, and for the majority of my youth if we did make applesauce at home, it was with the tried and true stovetop method. Honestly, it is pretty difficult to have an applesauce catastrophe if you are hovering over the pot, stirring fairly constantly.

But then I read about a completely different method to make applesauce at home. An almost completely hands off, completely painless method. It sounded too good to be true, but as I have come to find out since learning about this method, Judy Rodgers methods and recipes will NOT let you down. She calls for very little sugar, a little pinch of salt, some butter to add some richness, and then has you roast your little apples. Roasting the apples completely transforms boring applesauce into this extremely intense apple extravaganza from a few simple ingredients. It is thick, silky and rich from the little bit of butter used, but the true, tart, and bright flavor of apple sings through to tantalize your tongue.

I have very slightly adapted her recipe, as I prefer my applesauce to be a bit looser than the thick, chunky applesauce this recipe creates. It truly is a personal preference thing, and I did notice as I tasted and stirred that the intensity of the apple flavor dimmed ever so slightly as I added the water. I imagine you could probably use a mix of apple cider and water, but I added a little splash of apple cider vinegar and that perked it right back to the high intensity apple flavor. I used a mixture of the apples listed above, and I highly recommend it as you will get a beautiful blend of different flavors and slight variances in the final texture as well. If you do not want to get a variety of apples, I would recommend using a firmer apple such as Braeburn or Granny Smith as these are better for baking because they will not become mealy when cooked down.

Roasted Cinnamon Applesauce is excellent in baked goods, with Potato Pancakes, or just by itself as a snack!

Roasted Cinnamon Applesauce

Adapted slightly from Judy Rodgers’s Recipe

Servings: 5-6 Cups

This applesauce is tart, intensely apple, and the natural sweetness of the apples serenade the last dwindling days of summer into the autumn months. If you have very tart apples, I suggest using the full 2 Tsp of granulated sugar to roast, and then taste and adjust as you see fit after you mash them.I just a scant amount of Cinnamon as well, because I love cinnamon, but you can omit or add other spices if that’s your jam.

This applesauce works beautifully in baked goods to help you end up with a moist, delicious product without using a ton of oils. Since it has such an intense apple flavor, it is absolutely delicious in baked goods because you do not need to use a ton of other flavorings, just enough to enance the apple. I’d say it stores for up to a week in the fridge.

Ingredients:

3 1/2 to 4 pounds of Apples, peeled, cored, and cubed into 1 inch pieces. Make sure to choose apples that have a firmer texture such as Braeburn or Honeycrisp or Granny Smith as it will break down nicely without becoming mealy during the roasting process.
1 to 2 Tsp Granulated Sugar (depending on the tartness of your apples)
2 Tbsp Butter, cubed
Scant 1/4 Tsp ground Cinnamon
Pinch of Sea Salt, to taste
Splash Apple Cider Vinegar (Optional)
Water (Optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 F.
Peel, core, and cube the apples. Place in an even layer in a 9x13 pan.
Sprinkle the sugar, cinnamon, and a pinch of salt over the apples and toss to coat. Dot the cubed butter in the apples evenly.
Cover the 9x13 pan tightly with aluminum foil. Roast in oven for 30 minutes.
Once the 30 minutes are up, remove the aluminum foil from the pan, crank the heat of your oven up to 500 F and continue roasting for another 10 minutes.
Remove the apples from the oven and carefully mash with either a potato masher or a wooden spoon. Taste, and adjust sugar and salt if needed. If you like a looser consistency for the applesauce like I do, add about a 1/2 Cup water and mix in. Taste, and add a splash of apple cider vinegar if you want to brighten up the flavors just a bit.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.