Now, we all get recipes from someone else. And no doubt my aunt Penny got this recipe from someone else. But how far back in the recipe chain should one go in order to give food creators their proper due? I’ve decided one person back is suitable when no other information about a previous creator is given. 
Thus, I give you Aunt Penny’s Cranberry Applesauce 
I first had this applesauce at Penny’s house….it was sweet and tart and I could have eaten a gallon of it. She generously shared the recipe with me and my mother and I made it yesterday. (A blizzard is just beginning to hit….we’re due for 15 inches of snow….I’m guessing there’s going to be a lot of baking being done over the next couple of days out of sheer boredom and cabin fever.)
Applesauce wasn’t nearly as tricky as I thought it would be. In fact, it was…dare I say it….rather easy to make! One has to peel the apples initially and mash them up after cooking, but you pretty much just put it on the stove for 20-30 minutes and forget about it. yay for pretty much having no chance of burning something!
Aunt Penny’s Cranberry Applesauce
Ingredients –
- 3-4 pounds of peeled, cored, roughly chopped Granny Smith apples (or other good cooking apples such as Golden Delicious, Fuji, Jonathan or McIntosh) (Per the suggestion of Penny, we used three different kinds of apples…3 Granny Smith, 2 Golden Delicious, and 2 Jonathon. She said it would make for more flavor and a more complex texture…and she was correct!)
- 1½ to 2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries (I just use the 12oz bag available this time of year)
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1/3 cup white sugar (you may want to play with this amount a bit depending on how tart your apples are)
- 1 cup water
- ½ teaspoon salt
Directions -
1 - Place all ingredients in a large (5-quart) pot. Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer and cover. Cook 20-30 minutes or until apples can easily be mashed. Remove from heat.
2 - Mash apples and cranberries with a potato masher to desired consistency. (We used an old school potato masher, but I know Penny just uses a spoon. Used whatever you find easier and whatever gives you the results you’re after…potato masher will make for a smoother sauce and a spoon will leave you larger chunks and therefore, more texture.)
3 – Serve hot as a side to pork or turkey, or serve hot or cold as a dessert with some vanilla ice cream. Store in refrigerator for a couple of weeks or freeze for up to a year. Makes 1½ to 2 quarts. (Penny has frozen the mixture with success…..I’m sure ours won’t last more than a few days in the fridge…its just too good!)
The beautiful apple, cranberry, sugar mixture.
The finished product - It doesn’t look quite this flourescent in *real life*, but it still adds a lot of nice color to any meal/dish!
