I made some today for my kids. We bought the apples 2 1/2 weeks ago when we went to the pumpkin farm, which is also a major apple farm in the area (BelleWood Acres) - the cashier recommended I wait a couple weeks before making applesauce because the apples would be sweeter and need less added sugar.
The apples most recommended for applesauce are Gala, Jonagold, Golden Delicious, and Fuji.
I used 8 apples, peeled, cored and sliced. I added them to a pan with 1 1/2 cups of water (which easily could have been reduced to just one cup... I had to let some of the liquid cook off at the end). Then I added 1/4 cup of sugar, several dashes of ground cinnamon and two dashes of ground cloves. The cinnamon and cloves are basically to personal taste - you could add them after cooking if you aren't sure where you stand on your spice levels. :)
Cook over medium heat until the apple slices are soft and easily mashed. You can then mash them in the pot for a lumpier sauce or run it through a food grinder for a smoother sauce.
Here are my kiddos enjoying the fruits of my labor. Well, two of my three, anyway - my younger son (the pickiest of my three) devoured his bowl so quickly, I didn't have time to get a picture!
I put one container in the freezer for later and the rest in the fridge for this week! I'm thinking pork chops might be in our near future.
