Pantry Plan Share a recipe Sign in Menu

Applesauce · Stovetop Cinnamon

Homemade Stovetop Applesauce

Apples simmered with a splash of cider, lemon and a cinnamon stick until soft, then mashed chunky or blended smooth. Sweeten only if your apples need it; it's the classic partner for latkes.

New, no ratings yet0 reviewsby Simmerbee Kitchen

Prep
20 min
Cook
30 min
Total
50 min
Serves
About 4 cups
Level
Easy
Start cook modeAdd to planSave
Print
Full pageOne page, ingredients and steps4×6 cardIngredients on the front, steps on the back3×5 cardIngredients on the front, steps on the back
Jump to recipe

Ingredients

  • Applesauce
  • 4 lb apples, about 8 medium, a mix of sweet and tart
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
    Swaps for lemon juice

    Instead of lemon juice

    • Lime juice: The same amount. A different, more floral aroma; works almost everywhere.
    • Bottled lemon juice: The same amount. More sour and flatter; fine in cooking and baking, less bright in dressings and drinks.
    • White wine vinegar or white vinegar: Half as much. Sharper, with no citrus aroma.

    More for lemon juice

  • ½ cup apple cider, or water
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1 pinch kosher salt
    Swaps for kosher salt

    Instead of salt

    • Table salt or fine sea salt: About half as much as Diamond Crystal kosher, about ¾ as much as Morton kosher. The same saltiness when measured this way.
    • Salt by weight: 1 tsp is about 6 grams of table salt, 5 grams of Morton kosher, 3 grams of Diamond Crystal kosher. The most reliable way to swap, especially in baking and brines.

    More for salt

  • 2–4 tbsp granulated sugar, or light brown sugar, only if needed (optional)
    Swaps for granulated sugar

    Instead of sugar

    • Less sugar: Up to ¼ less in cookies, muffins and quick breads. Less browning and spread, a drier, more cake-like texture, and bakes go stale sooner.
    • Brown sugar: The same amount, packed. Moister and chewier, with a caramel flavor and darker color.
    • Coconut sugar: The same amount. Darker and caramel-like, a little less sweet; cookies spread slightly less.

    All 4 swaps for sugar

Cooking for a crowd? Pans, timing and salt for 12 to 50.

Missing something? Tap Swaps next to an ingredient, or see all substitutions.

Steps

  1. Peel, core and cut the apples into 1-inch chunks, tossing them with the lemon juice in a large pot as you go so they don't brown.
  2. Add the cider, cinnamon stick and salt to the pot.
  3. Cover and bring to a
    simmer (how to simmer) Simmer Cook liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles breaking the surface now and then. 1. Bring the liquid up over medium-high heat.2. As soon as bubbles rise steadily, turn the heat down.3. Adjust until only a few small bubbles break the surface every second or two.4. Stir now and then and check that it hasn't crept back to a boil. Done when: You see lazy, small bubbles, not a rolling boil. A "bare" simmer has just a bubble here and there. Safety: Steam burns fast: lift lids and foil away from your face, tipping the far edge up first.How to simmer: mistakes to avoid
    over medium heat.
  4. Lower the heat and simmer covered, stirring now and then, until the apples are very soft and falling apart.
    ⏱ Simmer apples: 20 min
  5. Take out the cinnamon stick. Mash with a potato masher for chunky sauce, or blend in the pot with an immersion blender for smooth.
  6. Taste, and stir in sugar a tablespoon at a time only if it needs it. If the sauce looks watery, simmer it uncovered, stirring, until thicker.
    ⏱ Thicken: 5 min
  7. Serve warm, at room temperature or chilled.

Tap an underlined word for how to do it, or see all techniques.

Tips

  • Mix your apples: sweet ones like Gala or Fuji for flavor, plus soft tart ones like McIntosh or Granny Smith for tang.
  • Leave the red peels on and blend smooth for a rosy sauce, or cook unpeeled and press it through a food mill to remove the skins.

Storage

Refrigerate in a covered container up to 1 week, or freeze up to 6 months.

Make ahead

Make up to 1 week ahead and refrigerate. Serve cold, or warm it gently on the stove.

How long leftovers keep, and freezing and reheating: leftovers and storage. In season: apples (August to November).

Quick answers

Can I freeze it?

Yes. Refrigerate in a covered container up to 1 week, or freeze up to 6 months.

Can I make it ahead?

Make up to 1 week ahead and refrigerate. Serve cold, or warm it gently on the stove.

What can I swap?
  • Instead of lemon juice: Lime juice, the same amount.
  • Instead of sugar: Brown sugar, the same amount, packed.

Answered from this recipe's own storage, make-ahead and swap notes.

Estimated nutrition per serving

Calories
130
Protein
<1 g
Carbohydrates
33 g
Fiber
5 g
Sugars
25 g
Fat
0 g
Saturated fat
0 g
Sodium
15 mg

Whole recipe, 8 servings: about 1,010 calories.

Estimate from USDA FoodData Central; not medical or dietary advice. Based on 5 of 5 ingredients.

How we estimate

We add up USDA FoodData Central values for each measured ingredient as written and divide by the recipe's 8 servings, so changing the servings or units here doesn't change a serving. Brands, swaps, trimming and cooking all change the real numbers.

Not counted: granulated sugar (optional).

Estimated cost

About $1.15 a serving

About $9.25 for the recipe as written (8 servings).

Estimate; prices vary by store and region. U.S. average prices for September 2026 from USDA ERS Purchase to Plate prices updated with the BLS Consumer Price Index. Priced: 3 of 4 ingredients, 100% by weight.

How we estimate

Each measured ingredient is weighed as in the nutrition estimate and priced at the U.S. average: BLS's average price where BLS publishes one, else USDA ERS's Purchase to Plate price for 2017-18 raised to September 2026 with the CPI for that food group. Whole packages, store brands, sales and regions all change the real cost: treat it as a ballpark.

  • apples $8.85 ERS
  • apple cider $0.25 ERS
  • lemon juice $0.15 ERS

Not priced (no official average price we can match, so not in the total): kosher salt.

Not counted: granulated sugar (optional, or to taste).

More dishes for less: cheap eats.

Keep this one

Sign in to save recipes into your own collections, log the days you cook them and keep private notes, like "use less sugar next time". Only you see them.

Sign in to saveNo password: we email you a code.

Gear for this recipe

As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Brands are suggestions; any similar item works.

Cleanup score 5/5 (very easy cleanup): 1 thing to wash, stockpot.

More kitchen gear and our gear guides

Reviews (0)

No reviews yet. Made it? Tell us how it went.

simmerbee.com/r/applesauce-stovetop-cinnamonSimmerbee