Not Your Mama's Applesauce (shh...there's chili in there)

Chili in applesauce? Why not?

Applesauce and chili powder make a surprisingly good combination. Wait, maybe it's not such a surprise.

Both these flavors work well with pork roasts, so why not eliminate the roast and just make a batch of spicy applesauce?

 As this cooked, I tasted it and realized the chili powder was overpowering the apples. I found some cranberry juice in the freezer, added it to the mix and tasted. Perfect amount of sweet and tart.

The resulting applesauce is a wonderful mix of warm spices, sweet apples and tart cranberries.

Happy soon-to-be-Fall!

Apple Sauce with Chili Powder and Cranberry

Makes about 7 4 oz jars

Ingredients:

  • 10 Granny Smith apples, peeled and cut into chunks
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 1/4 cup frozen cranberry juice

Method:

  1. Put the apples, sugar, lemon juice and chili into a large pot.
  2. Cook over media heat, stirring every few minutes, for 30 minutes.
  3. Add the frozen cranberry juice to the pot, stir until it's melted into the apple mixture.
  4. Using a potato masher, mash up the large chunks of apple and cook for another 1o minutes.
  5. Place in sterilized jars: click here to see how to sterilize and seal the jars.
  6. Turn the sealed jars upside down, allow them to cool completely.
  7. Good for three months until opened. Refrigerate after opening.