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Caramel Applesauce for Canning

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September 27, 2016 by Homestead Lady 10 Comments

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If you’re a homemade applesauce fan, you have got to try this naturally caramel flavored applesauce for a tasty twist on a classic snack. Watch for the special ingredient that makes this applesauce taste like a caramel apple! This recipe is safe for canning so that you can enjoy it all year round! This article has been updated for your better use since its original publication in 2016. caramel applesauce in jars being lifted from a water bath canner

Applesauce is in the Apples

First of all, you’ll want to pick a sweet apple for this recipe. Something like a Jonagold will work well.

You can choose one with a little bit of a bite to it, but not too much. To get that smooth caramel flavor, you don’t want something like a Granny Smith interfering with the flavor.

Applesauce is a great way to use up wormy, foraged, or surplus apples. Simply cut away any yucky parts, as well as the seeds and core, and your imperfect apples will be put to good use. I love zero waste recipes!

  • You can also use imperfect fruit to make your own fruit leather.

To get your canning kitchen organized this year, join our free email newsletter family and get access to our member library with free resources for more homestead learning. Especially for you, we created canning schedule sheets from our book, Once a Month Canning which you can download for free from the member library!

 

 

Coconut Sugar for that Caramel Flavor

The key ingredient in this recipe, apart from quality apples, is coconut sugar, which imparts the caramel flavor to the applesauce.

  • Rapadura, Succanat and even brown sugar will work to a degree. You’ll see that we mixed a few of those sugars into the recipe to give it depth.
  • However, the best flavor will come from coconut sugar, in my opinion. If you don’t have that, you can use rapadura or succanat – though I think they taste more maple-y than caramel-y.

Another thing to note is that the amount of sugar in this recipe is adjustable to your desired flavor. Apples are acidic enough to safely water bath can on their own without the addition of sugar (an acidic preservative).

  • Simply Canning can tell you how to make regular applesauce with or without added sugar – click here to learn how.

If you’re completely new to canning, please read:

>>Canning Jars and Other Newbie Canning Tips<<<

decorative jars with fabric on top

Applesauce is perfect for a new canner, so you can do this!

Recipe for Caramel Applesauce for Canning

This applesauce has a deep, rich flavor reminiscent of caramel, while still maintaining a bit of the bite of a fresh apple. 

Caramel Applesauce for Canning

Homestead Lady
This applesauce has a deep, rich flavor reminiscent of caramel, while still maintaining a bit of the bite of a fresh apple.  It is so rich and flavorful that you'll think you're eating a melted caramel apple!
Print This Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes mins
Cook Time 1 hour hr
Cool Time 45 minutes mins
Total Time 2 hours hrs 5 minutes mins
Course Healthy Recipes
Cuisine Preserved Foods
Servings 10 -12 pints (20-22 cups)

Ingredients
  

  • 40 medium apples; about twenty pounds
  • 4 cups coconut sugar to taste
  • 1 cup Succanat or Rapadura to taste; may also use organic brown sugar, but it's not as flavorful.
  • 4 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 2 teaspoon nutmeg

Instructions
 

  • Wash, core and quarter apples. Retain cores to make apple cider vinegar - tutorial is linked in the article.
  • Cook the apples over medium heat until they're soft in a large stock pot with about an inch of water on the bottom.
  • Allow the apples to cool.
  • Puree the apples in your blender or food processor, pouring the puree back into your stock pot.
    Add the sugars and spices, stirring until the sugar is dissolved and evenly distributed. Allow to sit for at least twenty minutes so the flavors can mellow. Taste test. Add more sugar and spice if necessary.
  • Reheat the puree in the stock pot.
  • Prepare your canning jars, seals and lids and process in a water bath canner for 20 minutes. Remember to adjust time for your altitude.

Notes

The yield on this recipe is super subjective, but it's between 10 and 13 pints.
If I'm using this caramel applesauce as a snack food for the kids, I add less succanat or raw sugar to reduce the sweetness.
If I'm going to use this as an ice cream topper or as a sweet add-on to our Rosh Hashanah latkes, then I add a bit more sugar to make that caramel flavor pop. Either way, this caramel applesauce is truly tasty.
We're not Jewish, but we have so much fun celebrating this time of year along with our Jewish friends. And any excuse to make this caramel applesauce and latkes is happily made use of. Shanah Tovah, my friends!
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

For a comparison recipe created by tested standards, please visit this applesauce canning post from the National Center for Home Food Preservation.

Save Apple Cores

As mentioned in the recipe, you can make an apple vinegar from your apple scraps. Simple visit our article:

—>>>Make Apple Chips in the Solar Oven – the vinegar tutorial is in there! <<<—

This will be similar to apple cider vinegar, though lighter in flavor. These instructions come from our book, The Do It Yourself Homestead.

The  first part of this article details how to make apple chips, FYI. Just skip that part if you’re not interested; the apple vinegar instructions are below all that.

Leftover Apples?

If you have more apples leftover, try this recipe for Apple Pie Jam from Timber Creek Farm. Tell me how it is because I really want to try it!

Try making apple sugar with Learning and Yearning.

Still have leftover apples? Try any of these preserving apples ideas from Schneider Peeps – there’s just about every way to preserve apples outlined here.

For inspiration on how to use your applesauce once it’s made, check out these 6 Sweet & Savory Ways to Use Applesauce.

And, if you happen to have a few apples leftover, try making this amazing apple pie filling from Nitty Gritty Mama.

Applesauce Canning with Kids

Applesauce is certainly something that an older child can handle making on their own. Water bath canning is very straightforward.

The fruit preparation is simple, as along as a child has been taught proper knife skills. Please read the article for more tips on

—>>>Keeping Kids Safe in the Canning Kitchen <<<—

It’s fun to taste test together and chat around the stock pot, but be sure to let your older children do this as much as they can on their own. Be sure to go over altitude/processing time adjustments with them as you both get the canner set up.

It’s good to be in the kitchen for that part just to be sure everything is in order.

  • To learn more about teaching kids to can safely, check out The National Center For Home Food Preservation’s free program for kids called Put It Up.
  • Since original publication of this article in 2016, the NCHF has put a layer of security on this information. You know need to request a link to be sent to you with the curriculum. Sadly, in our day of bots and cyber attacks, this kind of security is necessary. You can still access the great info, though!

Incidentally, this caramel applesauce makes a fantastic teacher or youth leader gift. My daughter left for her youth activity at church tonight with four pints of this applesauce tucked into her bag to give as gifts to her leaders.

For more gloriously unique and tasty canning recipes, be sure to check out my friend Kathie’s book below:


–>>Pin this Post For Later<<–

caramel applesauce in canning jars in a water bath canner

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Filed Under: Fall Foods & Preservation, Healthy Recipes Tagged With: Fall Crafts & Projects, Food Preservation, Gluten Free, Healthy Treat, Home Storage and Preparedness, Homemade, Homestead Family, Homestead Traditions, Kid Cooking, Make it Yourself

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. JES says

    September 27, 2016 at 9:04 pm

    This sounds delicious! I have pinned it 🙂

    Reply
    • Homestead Lady says

      September 27, 2016 at 11:45 pm

      It truly is so tasty! I hope you enjoy it. This is my favorite time of year to read your blog, by the way. I curl up and get inspired.

      Reply
  2. Alice says

    September 25, 2017 at 3:30 pm

    Sounds great! Love the caramelly taste of coconut sugar. Will surely try this!

    Reply
    • Homestead Lady says

      September 26, 2017 at 1:28 pm

      Thanks for stopping by, Alice! I love coconut sugar, too – you don’t have to work for rich flavor. Let me know if you think of any improvements for this recipe.

      Reply
  3. Lisa L Lombardo says

    September 6, 2019 at 4:11 pm

    This looks delicious, Tessa! Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
    • Homestead Lady says

      September 6, 2019 at 5:10 pm

      I can’t even explain how good it is, truly. We just opened our last jar from last year and there were audible gasps at the breakfast table when I mentioned it. My oldest said, “Well, when are the apples on? We’re going to make more, right?!”

      Thanks so much for stopping by, Lisa!

      Reply
  4. Bonnie says

    October 3, 2023 at 11:38 pm

    How many pints does this recipe make?

    Reply
    • Homestead Lady says

      October 5, 2023 at 7:06 pm

      Great question! It makes between 10-12 pints. It’s super dependent on the water content of the apples, how long you cook the sauce, how large the apples are, etc.

      Reply
  5. Maxine Wasyleski says

    October 9, 2023 at 11:32 pm

    Do you peel the apples for the caramel applesauce?

    Reply
    • Homestead Lady says

      October 11, 2023 at 11:23 pm

      Great question! You certainly can peel them but I don’t because I’m too lazy/short on time. The sauce blends up nicely without peeling.

      Reply
4.08 from 13 votes (13 ratings without comment)

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