I currently live in southern California but I am originally from a small Dutch town in Michigan. There are 2 things we take very seriously: tulips and apples. Fall in Michigan is my favorite time of year hands down and one thing I miss most about home. Apples are everywhere! Apple pie, apple cider, apple butter, apple crisps, apple donuts, heck I grew up eating apple slices with cheese and never knew that others might think that to be weird (it is delicious and you should try it!) Some parents have secret chocolate stashes that they hide from their children - I hide Honeycrisp apples. I don’t really hide apples from my family but if we have a different variety in the house and I notice someone is grabbing the last Honeycrisp I will absolutely make the suggestion that the other apple will probably be better.
If you live somewhere where you have access to an apple orchard that offers U-pick, take advantage of it! Once you eat a fresh apple right off the tree your life will be changed forever. Not to mention they will probably grow varieties you’ve never seen in stores so you can expand your apple tasting palate. Each variety varies in taste, texture and cooking ability. Truthfully when making an apple puree you can probably use any apple variety you find at the store and it will turn out great. However, if you are interested in learning about different apple varieties, their flavors and uses here is a link to help you out Crane's Orchard
This is also a helpful site in finding all orchards near you; not just apples. www.pickyourown.org
One last little apple tip for you before we get started on the puree - when baking with apples, such as making apple pie, mixing varieties will give you a great blend of flavor and texture. For example, mixing crisp tart Granny Smiths with sweeter and softer McIntosh.
Ok, I’m done drooling over apples. On to the cooking...
I started with a 3 pound bag of Fuji apples since they tend to be a sweeter apple and I didn't want anything too tart for baby food. You can easily make a half batch or even a quarter batch.
Wash the apples thoroughly and then peel them.
Once the apples are peeled cut them into slices and then dice the apples into small pieces. This part can be pretty tedious, fun background music seems to help :) It's important to make sure all the apple pieces are about the same size so they cook evenly. If some pieces are significantly bigger than others the smaller pieces may turn to mush while the bigger chunks are still hard.
Put the apple pieces in a large pot and add 4 cups of water, cover and boil over medium heat for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally or until the apple pieces are soft.... The best way to tell if they are soft? By scooping a piece out with a spoon, letting it cool for a second, and then tasting it of course! Best way to check your cooking is to taste as you go.
Now this makes a good sized batch so I would recommend pureeing it in 2 batches instead of trying to do it all at once. Trying to pour this out will most likely result in too much water coming out first and then apple pieces falling into it, splashing and making a huge mess... so to avoid all that use a measuring cup and scoop up some apples and water together.
Pour the apples and water into a food processor or a blender, turn it on and let it work its magic.
If the sauce is too thick or chunky just add more water and puree a bit longer.
Once it is the desired consistency spoon it into ice cube trays and repeat the previous steps until all the cooked apples have been pureed.
I use Fresh Baby ice cube trays because they come with lids so they are easy to stack in my freezer but any ice cube tray will work. Once the apple sauce is frozen just pop them out, put them in a ziploc bag labeled with the date and what it is. Ice cubes tend to be just under an ounce so whenever you are ready to use them just take out as many as you would like, heat them up and they are ready to go!
Now here comes the best part - the cost breakdown! I purchased this 3 lb bag of apples for $3.49. To wash, peel, cut up, cook, puree, and transfer to the ice cube trays it took me about an hour... so really this could be done while watching an episode of T.V. This batch made 44 ounces of apple puree which calculates out to $ 0.08 an ounce. While I was at the grocery store I also checked on Gerber baby food. For 2 containers of Stage 1 Apples, each one being 2.5 ounces it costs $0.97. That comes out to $0.19 an ounce. The amount of apple puree I made for $3.49 would cost me $8.36 in Gerber baby food. I understand this is only a $5 difference but for anyone on a budget you know those little costs add up!
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