Canned Apple sauce, Pear sauce, and Quince sauce
Description
If you're tired of dried apples, canned pears, and quince jelly, then this recipe is for you!
Pears need no added sweetener at all, and quinces will need more than apples will. If you're lucky enough to find Seckel pears, use them. They are wonderful! And quinces have a lovely perfume.
I like to use pint jars for this recipe. I can't eat a quart of fruit sauce fast enough to keep it from going bad!
Ingredients
Instructions
Prepare your fruit
Wash your fruit well. You don't necessarily have to peel apples and pears, but I recommend peeling quinces. Once your fruit is peeled, if peeling, cut out the stems, cores, and any bad parts. Chop the fruit into roughly 1 inch chunks and put them into your big soup pot. Add some water, maybe 1/4 of the height of the pot (if it is full of fruit).
Cook your fruit
Turn on the heat to medium low. You will have to watch the pot and stir the fruit, to make sure it doesn't burn. It should soon start to soften and cook. When it looks and feels like it is cooked through, remove it from the heat. If you have tons of excess water, you can pour some of that out.
Prepare your canner
Fill your canner halfway or so with water and turn on the heat to get it boiling. This is a good time to sterilize your jars and lids too. You can do this by boiling them in a big pot, but there is an easier way. Put them in a clean sink and fill them with boiling water. Pour the boiling water over the tops and down the sides too. After a few minutes, pour out the water and set the jars upside down on a clean cloth on a counter. Put your lids and rings in a saucepan of water and bring to boiling, then turn off the heat.
Make the fruit into sauce
For this you need a ricer. Put your fruit into the ricer and a big bowl underneath the ricer. Now start cranking that ricer to grind up your fruit. Do this until you run out of cooked fruit.
Now it's time for a taste test. If you think your sauce needs sugar, now is the time to add it. If you like cinnamon in your apple sauce, add it now. The world is your oyster, or fruit in this case.
Can your fruit!
Fill your jars with sauce, leaving 1 inch of headspace. Wipe the rims clean and put on the lids and rings, screwing the rings on but not too tightly. Using your canning tongs, put the jars in the canner and make sure the jars have at least an inch of water covering them. Boil them for 35 minutes. Remove them from the canner, set them on the towel, and let cool. You should start to hear popping sounds. This is the sound of jars sealing, a happy sound! If a jar doesn't seal, put it in the fridge and eat it, or freeze it. If you plan on freezing any, leave 1.5 inches headspace and use pint jars. When storing sealed jars, label them and remove the rings.
