Apples to Apples: Unsweetened Apple Sauce

I have made it a habit to browse the shitty fruit shelf at the grocery store before I buy any regular produce, and there are certain fruits I will only buy from there. Bananas, for instance. The only time I get to enjoy dehydrated banana chips, or Maple Walnut Banana Ice Cream is when I find bananas on The Shelf. Apples, however, were always an exception. Being available more locally than bananas, I always bought them fresh.

I leave for Europe in less than a month, and every penny saved now directly translates into a penny to spend then. So, when I saw half a dozen shitty apples for 99 cents...

The apples were bruised and soft—yuck, I hate soft apples. 

So, I made apple sauce. I half-heartedly looked for instructions, just in case there was something essential about the concept I was missing, but what I read only confirmed my assumptions—all you have to do is cook and mash the apples.

Fresh apple sauce, still warm from the stove, is unbelievably good. The apples get a little sweet from the cooking and reduction of water. I can't believe I've never made it before—probably the most comforting thing I've eaten all week...a good, simple recipe to balance out the crazyness of school ending and life changing.

Apple Sauce

(makes 3-4 cups)

Ingredients:

• 5 apples (I used one to make stew)

Instructions:
1. Peel, core and dice your apples.

2. Place in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until apples soften. 

3. Using a potato masher, or something along those lines, smoosh apples to desired consistency (I like having a few chunks of apple left)

There are different ways to store your applesauce if you don't plan on eating it right away, but I will be finishing mine this week, so I just put it in a glass jar in the fridge. And, I am sure there are endless ways to spice up applesauce—cinnamon, honey and apple cider were popular ones. I didn't want anything but apples...though I was tempted to add a little lemon zest.