Apple Pie Filling and Crock Pot Applesauce

Looks DELISH, don't you think? Oddly enough, I never use apple pie filling when actually making an apple pie... but the filling is GREAT for things like... crock pot pork, or a topping on vanilla ice cream... or heck - just eat it straight out of the jar.

The applesauce was YUM and terribly easy. Recipes for canning would make 7 quarts of pie filling and 6 pints of applesauce.


Apple Pie Filling:

Peel, core and slice apples, enough to fill 7 quart jars.

4 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup cornstarch
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp salt
10 cups water
2 Tbsp lemon juice

Mix together and cook until thick on medium heat. Fill jars with prepared apples and pour mixture over. Process in steamer canner/hot water bath for 30 minutes. (high altitude)



Crock Pot Applesauce

16 LARGE apples. (I used more, my gala's were small)
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tsp cinnamon
4 tsp vanilla
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup water


Skin, core, slice the apples and throw them in the crock pot. Add other ingredients and gently stir together. Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours. When tender, mash with a potato masher or a large fork.

Process in steamer canner/water bath for 25 minutes. (high altitude)

Cranberry Scones

Made these for our neighborhood recipe exchange last night at Heathers. (Which was ultra fun, btw... either that or I needed to get out of my crazy busy house... nope, it was ultra fun I'd say...)

These are REALLY easy... you know, easy but people THINK that you've worked your tail off. No, in fact... these were so simple I needed something else to do, so I bottled 6 more pints of applesauce while I made them. But I digress.

I give you: Cranberry Scones!



2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for the counter
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons butter, chilled & cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
3/4 cup dried cranberries
1 cup heavy whipping cream (milk may be substituted)

Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 450
degrees. Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together in a
medium bowl. Scatter the butter and the orange zest over the top.
With a pastry blender, cut the butter into the flour mixture until it
resembles coarse cornmeal (having a few slightly larger lumps are OK)
Add the cranberries and quickly mix in (be careful not to over-mix) Stir
in the heavy cream (or milk) with a rubber spatula until the dough
begins to form (about 30 seconds).
Turn the dough and any floury bits onto the floured counter and knead
until it forms a rough, slightly sticky ball (5 to 10 seconds).
Press the dough evenly into a 9” cake pan for the round shape. Flip
the now shaped dough back onto the counter and cut into 8 wedges.
Place the wedges evenly spaced on an ungreased baking sheet.
Bake until the scone tops are light brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool on a
wire rack at least 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature
(resist eating them hot out of the oven, because the cooling time firms
them up and improves their texture)

Just a quick note: If you happen to HATE dried cranberries (sorry Nicole...) you can omit them and the orange zest. You could really add anything you wanted to these babies... or nothing at all. They're forgiving, so no worries. :)