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Homemade Applesauce is one of those cozy kitchen staples that tastes worlds better than the jarred kind, with tender cinnamon-spiced apples cooked down into a warm, naturally sweet sauce. I started making it every fall when the apples came in, and now Maddie and Lizzie ask for it warm with dinner all season long. It is the perfect partner to a cozy bowl of apple crumble.
Just four ingredients and one pot turn fresh apples into the best homemade applesauce, chunky or smooth, however you like it.
Homemade Applesauce Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 15 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 35 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 50 minutes
- 🍽️ Serving: 4 servings
- ⚡ Calories: 143kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Warm, cozy, and lightly sweet with plenty of cinnamon
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy and beginner-friendly, like our cinnamon fried apples
Quick Answer
Peel, core, and chop your apples, then add them to a saucepan with water, sugar, and cinnamon. Cover and cook over medium heat for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the apples are soft. Mash with a potato masher for a chunky applesauce or use an immersion blender for a smooth one, then simmer uncovered for another 10 to 15 minutes until it reaches the thickness you like. Cool and serve your homemade applesauce warm or chilled.
Jump to:
- Homemade Applesauce Quick Look
- Quick Answer
- Why This Recipe Works
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to Make Homemade Applesauce
- Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Serving Ideas and Suggestions
- Homemade Applesauce FAQs
- Other Recommended Easy Apple Recipes
- Homemade Cinnamon Applesauce
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- Just four simple ingredients. Apples, water, sugar, and cinnamon are all you need for a sauce that tastes far better than anything from a jar.
- You control the sweetness. Because you add the sugar yourself, you can make it as sweet or as naturally tart as your family likes.
- Chunky or smooth, your choice. A potato masher leaves it rustic and chunky, while an immersion blender makes it silky smooth in seconds.
- It fills the house with the smell of fall. Apples simmering with cinnamon is one of the coziest kitchen smells there is.
- One pot, easy cleanup. Everything cooks down in a single saucepan, so there is barely anything to wash.
- It is naturally good for you. Made with real fruit and a touch of sugar, it is a wholesome snack, side, or topping.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It tastes so much fresher and cozier than store-bought, with real apple flavor and plenty of cinnamon.
- It uses just four simple ingredients and one pot, with hardly any cleanup.
- It is endlessly useful as a snack, side, or topping, and it is wonderful next to our apple crumble.
Key Ingredients
Here is what goes into the best homemade applesauce. Just a handful of simple ingredients.
- Apples: use sweet baking apples like Ambrosia, Gala, Fuji, or Honeycrisp; a mix gives the best flavor and natural sweetness.
- Water: a little water helps the apples steam and soften without scorching as they cook down.
- Granulated Sugar: just a touch to round out the flavor; adjust up or down depending on how sweet your apples are.
- Cinnamon: the warm spice that makes this taste like fall in a bowl, like the spice in our cinnamon fried apples.
- Optional add-ins: a squeeze of lemon, a pinch of nutmeg, or a splash of vanilla all make lovely additions.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
This homemade applesauce is easy to customize.
- Make it unsweetened: leave out the sugar entirely and let sweet apples shine on their own.
- Go extra spiced: add a pinch of nutmeg, cloves, or allspice for a deeper fall flavor.
- Brighten it: stir in a little lemon juice to keep the color fresh and add a touch of tartness.
- Add vanilla: a splash of vanilla extract stirred in at the end makes it taste extra special.
- Use it in baking: swap it for oil in muffins and cakes, or spoon it over our pumpkin sheet cake.
How to Make Homemade Applesauce
- Peel, core, and roughly chop the apples into even chunks so they cook at the same rate.
- Add the chopped apples, water, sugar, and cinnamon to a medium saucepan and stir to combine.
- Cover and cook over medium heat for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the apples are very soft.
- Mash the apples with a potato masher for a chunky applesauce, or use an immersion blender for a smooth sauce.
- Lower the heat and simmer uncovered for another 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it reaches your desired thickness, then cool and serve.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Use a mix of apples for the most complex, balanced flavor; all one variety can taste flat.
- Taste before adding all the sugar, since sweet apples may need very little or none at all.
- Chop the apples evenly so they soften at the same time and cook down smoothly.
- Simmer uncovered to thicken; the longer it cooks down, the thicker and more concentrated it gets.
- Mash to your texture while it is still hot, whether you like it rustic and chunky or perfectly smooth.
- Cool before storing, then keep it in jars in the fridge the way you would our make-ahead fruit desserts.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
Homemade applesauce is wonderful warm or chilled, served as a simple snack, a lunchbox side, or a cozy spoonful next to dinner.
It is a classic alongside savory dishes like pork chops and potato pancakes, and it is just as good for dessert with a dollop of whipped cream or a sprinkle over apple crumble.
It also makes a lovely topping for oatmeal, yogurt, and pancakes, or a sweet partner to apple cinnamon roll ups and warm cinnamon fried apples for an apple lover’s breakfast spread.
Homemade Applesauce FAQs
Sweet baking apples like Ambrosia, Gala, Fuji, Honeycrisp, or McIntosh all work beautifully. A mix of sweet and slightly tart apples gives the most balanced, flavorful applesauce. Use whatever is freshest at your market.
For a smooth, classic applesauce, peeling is best. If you have a food mill or strainer, you can leave the peels on while cooking for extra color and nutrients, then strain them out at the end.
Simply leave the sugar out and rely on naturally sweet apples like Fuji or Honeycrisp. You can add a splash of apple juice for a little extra sweetness without any refined sugar.
Stored in an airtight container in the fridge, homemade applesauce keeps for up to a week. Make sure it is fully cooled before sealing it up so condensation does not water it down.
Yes. Cool it completely, then freeze in airtight containers or freezer bags, leaving a little room for expansion, for up to three months. Thaw it overnight in the fridge and stir before serving.
For chunky applesauce, mash the cooked apples gently with a potato masher and leave some texture. For smooth applesauce, blend it with an immersion blender or in a regular blender until silky.
Loving apple season? Cozy up with our easy apple crumble next for another simple fall favorite.
Homemade Cinnamon Applesauce
Ingredients
- 4 baking apples peeled and cored, I used Ambrosia
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a medium-sized saucepot. Stir to combine, cover and cook over medium heat for 20-25 minutes stirring occasionally until apples are softened.
- Use a potato masher for a chunky texture and mash apples. Or, use an immersion blender for a smooth sauce. Lower heat to low and let cook an additional 10-15 minutes uncovered, stirring occasionally until desired thickness.
Notes
Nutrition
Love This Recipe?
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Oooh I love the addition of amaretto – YUM!
Super easy..only 2 of us so I halved the recipe
.I used granny smith apples because that’s what I had..since no kids were eating it, I also through in a splash of amaretto.
It was delicious.