Crock Pot Cinnamon Applesauce

 

 

I have been making this recipe for years. Homemade applesauce has so many advantages – it has less sugar than store-bought applesauce, it possesses fresher flavors, and you can use your favorite apples! If you want nice tart applesauce, the granny smiths do the trick, if you prefer a classic sweet applesauce, then honey crisp, red delicious or golden delicious work perfectly!

Crockpot cinnamon applesauce takes the convenience of slow cooking, and slowly caramelizes the natural sugars in the apples. The benefit? Slow cooker applesauce actually tastes like apples! You don’t have to do much to prep the apples, and no extra sugar is necessary! Depending on how “spicy” you want the cinnamon flavor, you have complete control. 

 

What apples are best for easy homemade cinnamon applesauce?

Crockpot applesauce without sugar relies on the quality of the apples for the sweetness. You can go with tart apples like granny smith or sweet apples like honey crisp or red or golden delicious varieties. Using a mix of tart and sweet is also fun to try. Look for apples that are fresh and not too soft. 

I typically do a mixture of both tart and sweet apples. 

 

Do you have to peel apples for homemade applesauce?

 

So, if you leave the skins on, I recommend a little extra cooking time to soften the skins enough. Either way, just make sure you core the apples for crockpot applesauce because you definitely don’t want seeds or that woody bit at the stem end in there!

 

How do you make homemade cinnamon applesauce in a crockpot?

Homemade crockpot applesauce requires only a bit of prep. If you decide on keeping the skins on, then prep goes as quickly as you core your apples. 

Add your lemon peels, juice, apples, and cinnamon sticks to your crockpot. You can dial-up or down the cinnamon according to your own tastes.

I want to taste the cinnamon accent, but I still want to taste the apples too. Over the years, I have played around with it. The first time I used 4 sticks of cinnamon, and I found it too overpowering. These days I typically use two. It’s all personal preference in the cinnamon applesauce game. 

 

Let the slow cooker work its magic. As the apples break down and become saucy, make sure to stir and taste. When you have the right consistency and the flavor is just right, then cut the heat. 

Can you overcook the apples?

In a slow cooker or Crock-Pot, most likely won’t risk burning the apples, but you can lose flavor if they overcook. That right there demonstrates everything wrong with most store-bought applesauce; it gets cooked to death. With crockpot apple sauce, you should just do a couple of taste tests along the way. Then, you make sure the perfect texture and maximum flavor results in perfect applesauce. 

The apples turn brown as they caramelize and that is a good thing!

Once the apples get soft enough, then you can easily apply a stick blender to get just the right consistency. You might want a bit of chunkiness, or very smooth. Either way, it tastes great!

Make sure to taste homemade apple sauce to check doneness. That way you can measure the texture and the taste to make it just right.

Note: If you are making homemade applesauce for baby food, then make sure it is nice and smooth and leave the cinnamon out. 

 

 

This is what my sauce looked like after being pureed with my emulsion blender.

 

 

 

 

 

Grab your apples – let’s make some applesauce!