It’s apple season.  Making homemade apple sauce is so fast and easy when using an Instant Pot.   This recipe makes a tartly sweet, unbelievably delicious treat.   Apple sauce from scratch is healthier and more delicious with a short ingredient list.  Store-bought versions pale in comparison in both color and flavor.  Make a big batch to have for sweet snacks, to stir into oatmeal and yogurt bowls, and to gift to friends and neighbors.  I heard this yesterday and it warmed my heart –  “Tell Miss Bita that her apple sauce tastes like eating the inside of an apple pie!”.  

I love using an Instant Pot to make apple sauce.  The Instant Pot does all the work – simply put all the apple chunks in along with a splash of lemon juice and a bit of sugar and the high heat and pressure break down the fiber resulting in a smooth yummy sauce.  After the cooking time has elapsed and the steam has been released, open the lid, and fill your house with fresh apple pie aromas.

Nutritional benefits

• healthy fiber
• vitamins
• antioxidants

We are so lucky that every season our generous neighbor with a bountiful garden including fruit trees gifts us with her Pippin apples.  Tree apples are ideal for use in apple sauce.  Any imperfections, lumps, bumps, bruises, or tracks left by hungry insects or squirrels can easily but trimmed and cut out.  If you are as fortunate as we are with an abundant supply of tree apples, store them in the refrigerator until you are ready to make your sauce.

If you don’t have Pippin apples at your easy disposal, I suggest a slightly tart apple that is still sweet for this recipe.  Honey Crisp, Pink Ladies, and Fujis all have a nice balance of tart and sweet that produces interesting, tartly sweet apple sauce.

Homemade cinnamon apple sauce is so good, that we usually eat it up plain with nothing but a spoon.  If you’re looking for added natural sweetness, use this apple sauce to stir into breakfasts and sweet snack bowls.

Serving suggestions

• stirred into oatmeal for natural sweetness
• in yogurt with fresh fruit, nuts, and granola as a filling breakfast or snack
• as a base to pies (add additional apple chunks)

Add a special touch with easy printable jar labels.  It’s always a good idea to add the date the sauce was made along with any other notes of the delectables.  Here’s a great free resource for printing labels straight from your printer:  Free Printable Canning Jar Labels.  Make apple sauce this season and have a couple of jars ready for hostess gifts, friends, and neighbors.

Once you’re in the canning and jarring mood, why not try your hand at jams and compotes?

Here are a couple of our favorites:  Red Plum Compote Jam and Melon Jam.

Enjoy!

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Instant Pot Cinnamon Apple Sauce

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Making homemade apple sauce is so fast and easy when using an Instant Pot.   This recipe makes a tartly sweet, unbelievably delicious treat.   Apple sauce from scratch is healthier and more delicious with a short ingredient list.  Store-bought versions pale in comparison in both color and flavor.  Make a big batch to have for sweet snacks, to stir into oatmeal and yogurt bowls, and to gift to friends and neighbors. 

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Ingredients

• 10 apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1 inch chunks
• 1/4 cup of fresh lemon juice
• 1/8 teaspoon of salt
• 1/4 cup sugar
• cinnamon stick
• 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon of ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Wash, dry and peel the apples
2. Core the apples and discard of the peels and the cores
3. Coarsely chop the apple slices to be about 1 inch in size
4. Place apple slices along with all of the ingredients in the instant pot along with the remaining ingredients
5. Set to Manual and pressure cook setting for 15 minutes
6. Allow for a slow-release of steam from Instant Pot (wait for the pressure indicator to drop down)
7. Carefully remove the lid of the instant pot
8. Stir the apple sauce well and allow it to cool off in the pot
9. Transfer the apple sauce to airtight containers - mason jars and jam jars work well

Notes

The cinnamon stick can be removed after cooking or stored in the mason jar along with the sauce.