I love to freeze and can food here at my home for later use. Matter of fact, I am pretty passionate about it as it is much cheaper and healthier for my family to enjoy my own homemade goodies instead of store bought junk.
Every September and October I get busy canning and freezing homemade applesauce for my family. I mostly “home can” my apple sauce but when I have a small batch of apples that need to be used it…well, then I use my slow cooker and make a batch of applesauce that I freeze.
Making your own slow cooker applesauce is really easy! Here is how I make mine.
1. Prepare some small freezer-safe plastic or glass containers. Make sure they are clean, dry and that the lids fit on them tightly.
2. Peel, core and chop your apples. I like to chop mine into small pieces so that they cook up quicker.
3. Place chopped apples into the slow cooker and add a little bit of water. Just enough water for them to cook in. Over time, you can ladle out the water if you add in too much. As apples cook they make their own juice, so don’t over-do it with the water.
4. Stir in 2 teaspoons of fresh or bottled lemon juice, sprinkle in some ground cinnamon and add 4 tablespoons of granulated sugar. Cover and cook for several hours on the low setting. Every hour or so, go stir them around and if necessary, ladle out some of the liquid.
Tip: We save our liquid and turn it into sweetened apple juice. You just place it into a mason jar as you ladle it out, let it cool and refrigerate it. We don’t add sugar because there is sugar in it and apples are sweet to begin with. You have to drink it up within 2-3 days or preserve it via home canning or freezing.
5. Once your apples chunks are nice and soft…spoon them into a blender, leaving the juice & water in the slow cooker. You mainly just want the apple pulp. Process on the low speed until its the consistency that you want. We like ours smooth and creamy.
6. Ladle your newly made applesauce into glass or plastic freezer containers. Let them cool for 1 hour. Place the lids on the containers, label them and freeze for up to 6 months.
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That’s it! It is really easy to make your own applesauce for your family. You can make it really sweet by adding in additional granulated sugar to the cooking process or keep it lightly sweetened like the way that I make it. Enjoy!
I think that homemade apple sauce is a great idea. I have never tried making it in a slow cooker. When I make it I do prefer fresh lemon juice and sometimes a pinch of cardamon.
I make a lot of applesauce and can it in pint jars, but I’ve never made it in the slow cooker. Next time, I’m going to try this, for sure! I love my slow cooker and am always happy to find a new use for it.
I usually leave the skins on, then ladle the cooked apples and liquid into a strainer. I let it drain into a bowl, then use the liquid to make jelly; it has loads of natural pectin, so all it needs is sugar and lemon juice. After the pulp has drained, I mash it through the strainer to separate the skins from the sauce. It’s so good.
Thanks for the idea about the slow cooker.
I love homemade applesauce. I make a ton of it and can it so I can have it on hand whenever I want it!
I love applesauce my favorite is made with granny smith apples.
this would be so good in an old-fashioned Apple stack cake!
My favorite containers to use are those little plastic snack cups from Tupperware (great for individual portions) and I also buy those small glass mason jars. You can get them at yard sales for 5 cents a piece or buy new for about $10 a box at the store. You can freeze in glass mason jars nicely.
Thank you so much for sharing this. I will definately have to try this. I think the most difficult step you described is finding enough storage containers with fitting lids (or maybe that is just me).
I love chunky applesauce and cannot seem to make it without cinnamon, since I put it in everything. I usually only make it when apples go on sale but it’s a treat.
I never thought of using a slow cooker for applesauce. I like getting apples from the reduced produce section, and making chunky applesauce with it. Great idea – must try it!
I have to make this for my family because I always love homemade applesauce better than store bought. I just love that this is made in the Crock Pot, and it is so easy to make. Thanks for the recipe!
NOTHING yummier than home-made applesauce! My grandmother always made the best with apples she picked from her own orchard, and she canned it – I remember her Ball jar stove-top steamer like it was yesterday. I love your recipe though. I just need a slow-cooker!
I’ve never made applesauce, but I like to eat it. I think I’d use brown sugar in this instead of the white sugar.
Thank you for this recipe. I LOVE applesauce.
This looks very nice! I’ve really never tried home-made applesauce before, just the store bought. I would like to try this, but I have a question. There are so many apple varieties, and they say certain ones are better for pies/baking, etc – is this recipe good for all varieties of apples, or should I stick to pretty much one type? Thank you.
I have used all different kinds…Granny Smith and McIntosh work well but so do many other varieties.
Thank you Shelly, I look forward to fixing this. (((HUGS))) and thinking of you.