Along with Fall and the cooler temperatures comes canning season, at least for me. During the months of September and October I’m busy with my home canning making homemade applesauce, apple pie filling, apple butter, pumpkin butter, pear sauce, and several other goodies to stock my winter pantry.

* This post contains affiliate links.

Earlier this month I purchased a bushel of apples at our local Farmer’s Market and got busy with my home canning. You can find my recipe for home canned Apple Butter and Creamy Applesauce right here on the blog. This recipe will yield 6 to 7 pint jars. Please see my additional notes located below the recipe.

Apples Pie Filling Recipe

10 lbs.  fresh apples
Ball Fruit-Fresh Produce Protector
4 cups granulated sugar
4 cups water
1 Tbsp. lemon juice

Wash, peel, core and slice apples. Some people slice them into rings but I like to peel, core and cut into wedges. Treat with Fruit-Fresh to prevent apples from darkening.

Combine granulated sugar, water and lemon juice in a large stock pot. Bring mixture to a full boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Boil for 5 minutes. Remove pan from heat. Drain apples from water and then place them into the hot syrup and let stand for 10 minutes. Bring apples and syrup to a full boil over medium to high heat. Reduce heat to a simmer and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove apples from syrup, keep hot. Return syrup to a boil.

Layer hot apples loosely into a hot canning jar. Ladle hot syrup into the jar leaving a 1/2″ headspace. Wipe rim, add seal and add the band until it’s fingertip tight. Place jar on the rack elevated over simmering water of the canner. Repeat until all jars are filled.

Lower the rack into the simmering water. The water needs to cover the top of the jars by at least 1″ in depth. Adjust heat to medium-high and bring the water to a boil. Process the jars for 20 minutes. Turn off the heat and remove cover. Let jars sit in the hot water for an additional 5 minutes. Remove jars from the caner and place them on top of a towel on your counter to cool. If properly processed they should keep for up to 1 year. Store in a cool, dry place.

Notes: This pie filling can be used a wide variety of different ways. I will drain out the syrup and use the apples to make apple crisp, apple cobbler, fruit pies, apple dumplings, etc. You can turn it into applesauce once you open the jar…by just tossing it into the blender and blending until smooth.  Once the jar has been opened you will need to store it in your refrigerator.

Purchasing Apples: I personally like to use a combination of apples when I do my home canning. I will use 1/2 sweet eating apples and 1/2 tart baking apples. I personally like the two type’s combined. Always purchase ripe apples that don’t have any damage, mold, or bruising. Quality counts!!!

* This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, we may or may not receive a small commission which helps to support this site. Thank you!

Last month I was at the local farmer’s market and found a great special on fresh pineapples. We love pineapple, so I picked up 4 of them for just $1.50 each. Obviously we can’t eat 4 of them right away, so I decided to whip up two batches of homemade pineapple jam. You will need 4 cups of fresh pineapple (peeled, cored and chopped) per batch of jam that you make. I was able to get one batch per pineapple with some leftover that we ate.

* This post contains affiliate links.

This recipe requires a water bath canner, home canning supplies and 8-ounce glass mason jars (jelly jars). Each batch will yield approximately three 8-ounce jars. Here’s the recipe that I like to use and if you’re looking for more home canning recipes, you’ll find over 50+ right here on the TwoClassyChics blog.

Pineapple Jam Recipe

4 cups Fresh Pineapple (peeled, cored, finely chopped)
2 1/2 cups Granulated Sugar
1 Lemon, unpeeled, seeded, thinly sliced
1 cup Water

Prepare water bath canner, glass jars, and lids. Get out all of the supplies that you’ll need (ladle, slotted spoon, jar lifter, lid lifter, hot pads, cotton cloth to wipe rims, old kitchen towels, etc.).

In a large saucepan combine together the chopped pineapple, granulated sugar, lemon slices and water. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly to dissolve the sugar and to prevent sticking. Boil, stirring frequently until mixture thickens, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat. Test for gel stage (Use thermometer to see if it has reached the gel stage at 220 degrees F). If reached, skim off foam in necessary.

Ladle hot jam into hot jars, leaving a 1/4″ headspace. Remove air bubbles, wipe the rim clean with a cotton cloth. Add the seal and ring until its fingertip tight.

Place jars in the water bath canner (you should have the water simmering, but not at a rolling boil). You need enough water in it to cover all of the jars by at least 1″. Continue to fill jars and place them one by one into your canner. Lower the rack down into the water. Place cover on the canner. Bring the water to a rolling boil and process for 10 minutes.  Turn off heat, remove the canner lid. Wait 5 minutes, then remove jars. I like to place mine on my countertop with a cotton towel underneath them. Let them cool to room temperature. Test to make sure all jars sealed correctly. Store in a cool, dry place. Your jam should keep for up to 1 year if processed correctly.

* This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, we may or may not receive a small commission which helps to support this site. Thank you!