Applesauce jello

I saw the blog post on Primally Inspired for a jello recipe and was super happy! A nice treat with a bit of protein and amino acids, yet not heavy on honey. I made it once with true cranberry juice (no sugar added = super tart), per the recipe (i.e. two cups of fruit juice, two tablespoons gelatin, one tablespoon honey), plus added a few cherries, and it was delicious!

However, I don't want to add honey to my foods, certainly not on a regular basis. So I decided to try the jello recipe with applesauce as the liquid, sans honey.

Ingredients
2 C applesauce, hot out of the crock pot, or out of a jar and warmed
2 tbsp beef gelatin
3-4 tbsp cold water

Instructions

1. Set out an 8x8 baking dish
2. Mix gelatin in with the cold water, and mix with a fork until combined (it will be really thick)
3. Scoop the hot applesauce into a mixing bowl and quickly add the gelatin/water mixture, mixing fervently to ensure that it dissolves evenly throughout
4. Place in fridge for a few hours until it sets up
5. Cut, serve and enjoy! It's delicious!

The texture is very homogenous - it's like a semi-solid bar of applesauce. I really love it!!

This is what it looks for going in to the fridge, and coming out when solid!

Lazy-ass applesauce

I buy produce from door to door organics on a weekly basis, except in the summer when my garden is producing. One of my latest favorites is their ten-pound box of imperfect apples for $6.99 - what a steal! This week I bought two boxes (ahem, twenty pounds of apples)! I picked the worst twenty apples (which weren't really even that bad, perhaps one to two bruises each, and/or a mark or two) of the two boxes to use for applesauce. I have about forty apples remaining, and will make at least one more batch of applesauce, perhaps two.

I have two wee guys at home, and hence don't have time to hang out with a double broiler all day making applesauce. When I bought a ten pound box of apples a few weeks ago, I asked some ladies from a parenting forum to share the quickest way to make applesauce. One person replied with a crock pot recipe, and I was sold!

Ingredients
20 apples, minus bruises, cores and nibbles (be sure to remove all seeds)
1/2-1 C water
2 tbsp cinnamon

The carnage. I use that nifty little gadget there to core and slice the apples in one step. I leave the skins on, because it provides a nice color for the applesauce (pinkish). My mother-in-law strains her applesauce to remove the skins once it is finished cooking, but I don't mind the skins in my applesauce, and hence I leave them in. Feel free to strain as a last step if you wish, or peel prior to coring/slicing if you prefer.

Instructions

1. Add enough water to the crock pot that you have about a quarter-inch of water (to protect the apples from burning until they start to produce liquid)
2. Add those apples (minus cores and bruises, of course)
3. Add cinnamon (I used about 2 tablespoons - use as much or as little as you wish - you can always add more at serving time)
4. Put the lid on, cook on low for 6-8 hours. I stir them periodically (once every hour or two, if I'm around)

The finished product

Storage

I keep some in a pint or quart sized canning jar in the fridge, and also freeze some (in individual six-ounce-glass containers). I pull the frozen ones into the fridge the night before consuming - the applesauce freezes wonderfully!