Apples

  One of my brothers has 2 apple trees in his yard.  One of those trees produced about 10 bushels of apples this year.  The other took this year off, which is fine.  Anyway, last year the silly man wasted his crop.  Didn't give them away, didn't sell them, & didn't make anything from them either.  So this year, not that I need another thing to do, I'm making applesauce; apple butter; apple leather, & dried apples.  Not to offend the Great Holy or the apple trees, but it's a good thing I really like the smell of apples..

  I also love caramel apples, but I don't eat them often because they give me gas.  We grandmas can only get away with so much....  and "apple gas" isn't one of them. ;-)  So I made a recipe for Caramel Apple Sauce, & here it is:

  Apples - 5 lbs.  Cinnamon powder - a big bottle (Dollar Store is fine)  Vanilla - a large bottle if you make more than 1 batch  A bag of milk caramels (Kraft works fine)  A bottle of apple juice (You'll need extra to get the apples to cook down to the right consistency.  Optional: Instant oatmeal for thickening, if you like thick sauce - 1 envelope / batch

  Equipment: jars with lids (you can recycle your jars just fine) - 5 lbs of apples makes about 6 pints of this recipe.  Crock pot (best if the crock is removable for easier cleaning)  Potato masher  sharp Knife  Blender or food processor  Cooking spoon  Optional: Big Mouth Funnel for filling jars

  Prep your apples (wash, cut out blossom ends, maybe core them*), cut into chunks & either run thru the blender or the food processor.  Put the apple 'smash' in the crock pot & turn on high; add 1 - 2 C apple juice*, put lid on, let cook a couple of hours.  (* Apple seeds contain anti-cancer agents,so I don't core apples for this. The blender or food processor chops them up really fine.)

 Turn crock pot to low, mash the 'smash' with the potato masher, mix well.  Add Cinnamon to taste (at least 1 Tbsp), and 1 Tbsp vanilla, stir in well, partly cover; add at least 48 of the unwrapped caramels, stirring well after each handful (about 8); put lid on crock; get jars ready.  I wash them in hot soapy water, rinse well, & put in the dish drainer upside down while I wash & rinse the lids.

  Stir the caramel applesauce well (the caramels will have melted into the applesauce), put the big mouth funnel in a jar, & fill to within 1/2" of jar opening.  Make sure top of jar opening is absolutely clean or jars won't seal (paper towels are good for this); put lid on & tighten as tight as you can.  Set somewhere to cool, leave at least 1" of space between jars for air circulation.

  Listen for the "plink!" sound that says another jar has sealed; and enjoy!  Eat as is; use in sandwiches (melt your favorite cheese on a slice of bread; add the caramel applesauce & another piece of bread - yum!); top pancakes or waffles with this; is great with yogurt or ice cream..  I feel really sorry for those who can't eat dairy - but I'm happy to sacrifice & eat your share for you.