Seasonal Spicy Slow Cooker Applesauce

It's pretty obvious how excited I get for the Annual Farm Crawl, and I get equally excited for the aftermath too. I spend weeks using my farm fresh apples in a variety of recipes, some new some old. One sweet treat I always make is applesauce in the slow cooker. It's easy, delicious and quite nutritious for a snack or a side. 

The slow cooker is a staple in my kitchen simply because of its simplicity. For most of us our days are extremely busy running around from one place to the next. A slow cooker allows you to minimally prep for a meal and leave it to cook while you're taking care of business, only to return for ready to be deliciousness. I literally took ten minutes, threw all of the ingredients in the pot, pressed the on button, went to bed, and woke up to chunky applesauce. Okay, so maybe I didn't sleep enough this night but rising to smell of sweet apples, cinnamon and ginger drifting through the house made getting up earlier much easier. ;)

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I'll write my 'recipe' below, but the truth is I just sort of winged it this year. First, I chopped up my apples (mixed variety from Riamede Farms) into big chunks. And yes, I left the skin on. You'll quickly learn, I don't peel much of anything. Why? Not only do fruit and vegetable peels contain fiber, which is lacking in most Americans' diets (and needed for more reasons than you want to read right now), but also a large percentage of a food's vitamins and minerals lie right under the skin. So when you peel a fruit or vegetable, you're discarding all of these other beneficial nutrients too. For an apple, that means you could be getting at least 1/3 less of vitamins A and C than you thought!  

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The next step was to add the seasonings. This part is up for interpretation because we all have different taste preferences. I like my applesauce with a little kick, so if you don't particularly like spicy applesauce, I recommend lessening the measurements of the cloves and ginger. 

I mixed in the rest of the ingredients, set the pot to cook and ta-da!! 

Despite the picture making the apples look like chili, I guarantee the applesauce looks prettier in person and also smells heavenly! :D

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Since I knew my applesauce would eventually be part of an apple cake recipe, I used an immersion blender to get a smoother texture. You can use a blender or any other item to puree the apples, but if you use the immersion blender, go slowly because it may splash! And can be hot!

Now you're ready to have your homemade applesauce! See?! An incredibly nutritious and delicious sweet treat with minimal effort. My favorite eats include topping with some nonfat plain greek yogurt or spreading on some toast. Enjoy! :)

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Seasonal Spicy Slow Cooker Applesauce
Yields: ~4 cups

• 7 each apples 
• 1 each juice of a lemon 
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 7 cinnamon sticks (1 per apple)
• 1-1/2 tsp cloves, ground
• 3/4 tsp ginger
• 1-1/2 cup water (add 1/4 cup if cooking longer)

Chop the apples (with the peel!) into large chunks and place them into the pot. Squeeze the lemon juice over the apples. Mix in the maple syrup. Add the seasonings and water, and stir until the apples are evenly coated. Cover the pot with the lid. 

Cook the apples on low heat for 4-6 hours. I leave this decision up to you and your preferences. The applesauce will be a bit thicker if you cook it longer.  

Let the applesauce partially cool and puree until desired consistency. Serve immediately or store in containers in the fridge for later. 

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