FRANKLIN STREET INN

BED & BREAKFAST

FRANKLIN STREET INN

BED & BREAKFAST

August 15, 2020

Rhubarb Applesauce

Rhubarb Applesauce finished product

Here at the Franklin Street Inn Bed and Breakfast, Keith and I have had lots of time trying new recipes from various sources (online, cookbooks, friends/family) through this slow Covid-19 summer.  We thought “lets make the best of a tough situation by  wisely using our time preparing new recipes, repairing/painting the house and planting new gardening additions”.  So much of our summer has been just that.  We’ve been able to transplant flowers given to us from neighbors and family.  We’ve painted 4 interior rooms (with the intention of doing more).  We also have repaired and painted the north and west sides of the exterior of the house.  All things that were needed to maintain the beauty of this bed and breakfast but never had the time.  (We have even tried our hand at growing pumpkins.  Going to try to use the pulp for different recipes.  Fingers crossed!).

WHERE DID WE FIND THIS RECIPE?

One of our new recipe discoveries this past May was from our sister Pamela.   She found a recipe for rhubarb applesauce in the newspaper and gave it a try.  Once we had some, we knew we had to make it for our guests.  If you remember, we have at least 11 rhubarb plants from which to gather our fruits for a variety of recipes.  So, we served it to several guests who loved it!  One guest even recommended we try to can and sell it.  I don’t think we want to attempt that endeavor, but we are willing to share the recipe from the newspaper.  It was submitted by Cheryl Miller of Fort Collins, CO.  Well, let me tell you, Cheryl, it’s a keeper!

Frozen diced rhubarb and Granny Smith apples. Clean and peel apples to prepare for coring.

HOW TO MAKE RHUBARB APPLESAUCE

What I really like about this recipe is the ease of it.  The hardest part is peeling and dicing the apples.  I wrote, in a previous blog about freezing extra rhubarb. ( https://www.franklinstreetinn.com/blog/rhubarb-a-year-round-delight

Now all I have to do is measure out the rhubarb, peel and dice the apples, measure the sugar, and “poof” let it cook for 40 minutes.  Now that’s my kind of recipe, little work with big flavor results!

    Use apple corer with a lid to safely core your apples         Apple corer with lid used to protect your fingers.

To make the job a little easier, I invested in this apple corer.  I love it because of the heavy, large grip handles and the lid.  The handles allow me to have more leverage to press the blades through the apple.  The lid finishes the process by pushing the slices and core through the sharp blades without allowing my fingers to also be sliced on the sharp blade.  I speak from experience when saying “I love this safety feature”.  Once I have peeled and cored the apples, it’s a simple matter of using your sharpest knife to dice them.  I don’t have a food processor so I do it “the old-fashion way”.  It gives me a sense of satisfaction and allows me to hearken back to days when my mom and I would peel apples to make her famous apple pies!  Oh…they were good!  Sorry…I digress…..

  Diced apples and rhubarb in large cooking pot.         Add sugar to fruit and mix completely. Place lid on top and simmer for 40 minutes.

COOKING THE APPLESAUCE

Once the fruit is prepared, toss it into a heavy cooking pot.  I have a Dutch oven pot I use for making soups, stews, tomato sauce and (now) applesauce.  Pour the sugar over top and stir in to cover the fruit thoroughly.  Put the lid on the pot, turn the burner to “simmer” and the timer to 40 minutes.  Come back every 15 minutes or so to stir the sauce.  It is done when the fruit is cooked down and blended.  If you like your applesauce chunky then stop the cooking process when the fruit is soft but chunks are still visible.  Take the pot off the burner, add the nutmeg and cinnamon, stir, then let it cool.

Place selected amount of applesauce into freezer containers.         Label and date your applesauce. It will keep for 3 months in the freezer.

FREEZING THE APPLESAUCE

Once it’s cooled, I place my applesauce in containers.  One for the refrigerator to eat now!  The rest goes in freezer-safe containers.  Applesauce can be safely stored in the freezer for up to 1 year.

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/234078/applesauce-for-the-freezer/

I label my containers with the item name and the date.  That way I can keep an eye on how long it’s been in my freezer.  I have found that (like cookie dough and pizzas) rhubarb applesauce doesn’t stay in the freezer long enough to challenge the 1 month range let alone 1 year range!

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we have!

RECIPE

Rhubarb Applesauce – Cheryl Miller, Fort Collins, CO

Prep: 10 min., Cook: 40 min, Makes: 4 cups

1 lb. rhubarb (about 3-4 stalks) trimmed and cut into ½ inch chunks

2 lbs. tart apples, peeled and cut into ½ in chunks

½ to 1 cup sugar

¼ tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg

1 – Place rhubarb, apples and sugar (to taste) in large saucepan.  Cover and simmer until fruit is tender, about 40 minutes.

2 – Stir in cinnamon and nutmeg.  Serve warm or cold

 

Nutrition Values: (¼ cup is 58 cal., 0 fat (0sat.fat), 0 chol., 1mg sod., 15g carb. (13 g sugars, 1g fiber), 0 pro).