Roasted Applesauce

Recipe by Bonnie Bissonette, Weavers Way Mt. Airy Produce Buyer

Ingredients

  • 4 lbs. apples (a combination — some sweet, some tart — works best)
  • Pinch of kosher salt
  • 1-2 tsp. granulated white sugar
  • 3 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into slivers
  • A splash of apple cider vinegar (Solebury’s is great here, but Bragg’s does nicely, too)
  1. Preheat oven to 375º.
  2. Peel, core, and quarter the apples into an ungreased roasting pan or a 13x9-inch baking pan.
  3. Toss with a little salt and 1 tsp. of the sugar. If you’re just using sweet varieties of apples like Fuji or Gala, or if you don’t want to use sweetener, it’s fine to omit the sugar.
  4. Dot the apples with butter, cover tightly with aluminum foil or the pan’s lid, and bake until the apples start to soften, about 15-30 minutes.
  5. Remove the foil, raise the heat to 500º, and return the pan to the oven. Leave the apples to dry out and color slightly, about 10 minutes more. When the tips of the apples are golden and the fruit is tender, remove the pan from the oven and coarsely mash the apples with a potato masher or soup ladle.
  6. Splash the apples with apple cider vinegar and adjust the seasoning and sweetness with salt and sugar.
  7. Serve warm on its own, as a dessert with cinnamon sprinkled over, as a sauce for pork chops, or cold the next day.