A great excuse to go apple picking, this simple, sugar-free Crock-Pot Applesauce fills your house with the warm scents of fall.
If you dove into my recap of my Apple Themed Blogger Potluck, then you may have moseyed to New Leaf Wellness, the hub of crock-pot maven, Kelly McNelis. She might be the very first person I have met who legitimately has her shit together. One of the not-so-secret secrets of her mastery seems to be her slow cooker.
Kelly has streamlined meal planning, grocery shopping, feeding her growing family, and generally devoting more time to genuinely enjoying life. More importantly, after sampling two of her recipes at the potluck, I can say she is doing all those feats well. I’ve been wanting to dive into her crock-pot lifestyle, so this Crock-Pot Applesauce is the proverbial dipping of my toes. Hopefully soon I’ll have a freezer full of ingredients ready for the slow cooker.
Since I wanted to share this applesauce with my dog, I kept my crock-pot applesauce sugar-free. Since the Urban Farmer is also an urban beekeeper, I used local honey as the sweetener (also beneficial for dogs), but you could use maple syrup for a vegan option, or stick to Kelly’s original brown sugar for a more indulgent fall treat.
So dip your toes in with me, and fill your house with that warm, fall feeling. Then, maybe we’ll all head to New Leaf Wellness and start crock-pot freezer plans together!
Cheers,
Sugar-Free Crock Pot Applesauce
About this Recipe: A little chopping, then set it and forget it. Apple sauce at its easiest and perfect for freezing. Adapted from New Leaf Wellness.
Ingredients
3 pounds tart apples, roughly chopped
2 Tablespoons honey (use maple syrup for a vegan option)
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
Directions
Combine all ingredients in your slow cooker.
Cover, and cook on “low” for 6-8 hours. (A shorter cooking time will result in a chunkier applesauce.)
Mash to desired consistency manually or by pulsing in a food processor.
Enjoy!
I am trying this recipe today with apples picked from our trees. Can’t wait to see how it comes out.
That makes it even more special! 🙂