Applesauce and Apple Bread

First off, never buy applesauce again. It is super easy to make at home and you get to control the ingredients and the amount of sugar (if any!). The results are excellent.

We found ourselves with a lot of apples recently. We've been getting them in the box and a friend gave us some apples from the tree in his yard. So I decided to make apple bread. I got online and looked around and settled on a recipe. But as I was reading the comments below the recipe a lot of people said they omitted the oil and added some applesauce instead. Less calories and it makes the bread moister. I had enough apples to do both. So let's start with the applesauce...

Applesauce

• 4 apples, peeled, cored, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon allspice

The original recipe called for 1/4 cup of sugar. Yikes! I added no sugar opting for a 1/2 teaspoon of honey. If you do want sugar just start with 1 tablespoon and build it up over time until you get it to your liking.

In a saucepan, combine all ingredients. Cover and cook over medium heat stirring occasionally for 20 minutes or until apples are soft. Allow to cool and then mash with a fork or a potato masher. I used my potato ricer.

This will make about a cereal bowl's worth of applesauce. It will keep in the refrigerator for a week or so. Now that I had the applesauce, it was time to make the bread.

Apple Bread

• 3 cups of flour (I did 2 regular, 1 spelt)
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup applesauce
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 cups apples, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped

Pre-heat oven to 350. In a large bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix and set aside.

In a large bowl place applesauce, apples, eggs, sugar, and vanilla. Stir to mix.

Combine bowls and mix well. The batter will be pretty thick. Too thick? Add 1/4 cup of orange juice. Pour the contents into bread pans or muffin pans. Bake at 350 or 40-45 minutes. Use a toothpick to test. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans. 

I made one large loaf, 2 small loaves, and 6 muffins (There's only 5 in the photo because I had to test one!). This makes excellent muffins.

In the Garden: October 2011

I did some planting today in the backyard. The tomato and gypsy pepper plants (there in the background) are still producing but probably not for much longer. A few weeks ago I pulled up the bean bush, basil plants, and red leaf lettuce. Today I put in Stockton red onions, Romaine lettuce, Brussels sprouts, and two broccoli plants. A cool weather garden.