I finished canning the bushel of apple seconds I had gotten from a local orchard at the end of last week. Fingers crossed it will be enough to hold us through the year. We didn't have enough last year so I doubled the amount I made this time around. When all was done and canned I had just over 2 lbs. of apples remaining. I had a couple of ideas but then when I was out in my herb garden I was struck by some inspiration.
Lavender. I love lavender so much. It's one of the herbs that I am constantly running between my fingers when I walk past it in my garden. I add the essential oil to the bucket of water I wash my kitchen floors with. I put a few drops of the oil on a cloth and throw it in the drier with my clothing. It is a scent I love to be around. It's like a dear friend.
I wanted to see what would happen if I combined the flavors of lavender, vanilla, and apples. In my mind it tasted really good. Besides I had to use up the rest of those apples.
Lavender Vanilla Applesauce
Ingredients:
- 2 lbs. of apples; peeled and cored
- 1/4-1/3 cup of apple cider
- Juice from 1/2 a lemon
- 1 vanilla bean
- 1/2 Tbs. of fresh lavender blossoms (or 1/2 a tsp. of dried lavender blossoms)
- 1 tsp. of honey
Directions:
- Place the apples, the cider (enough to cover the bottom of the pan), and the lemon juice in a medium saucepan over medium- high heat. Bring to a boil.
- Split the vanilla bean with a knife. Using the back of the knife scrape out the seeds and add them to the pot. Tie the lavender flowers into a bundle and add them to the pot as well. Make sure to push the blossoms to the bottom of the pot so they infuse into the cider and lemon juices.
- Lower the heat to medium-low and stirring occasionally, simmer the apples until they are soft and falling apart. This will take about 20 minutes.
- Remove the lavender bundle. Using an immersion blender (or a potato masher if you like chunkier applesauce), blend until sauce is smooth.
- Add in the honey. Stir to combine. Check for sweetness and add more honey if you like.
- Cool completely.
For me, when I put a bite in my mouth I am hit immediately with the lavender, next I taste the tartness of the apple, and the last thing I taste is the vanilla. It is the most unique applesauce I've ever had. If you like floral notes in your food you will love this applesauce.
I've wanted to cook/bake with lavender for months. This looks delicious! I really love that last photo. I've never made applesauce, either. How much applesauce do you get from 2 lbs. of apples?
ReplyDeleteNot much. I didn't measure it but it was somewhere between 2-3 cups. Probably closer to 3 cups. I usually do applesauce in 12 lb. batches. That makes 4ish quarts of sauce.
ReplyDeleteI love lavender. I made lavender ice cream one time. I used to grow it but it hasn't done too well here. Great post.
ReplyDeleteThis looks and sounds like heaven!!!
ReplyDeleteCan I use dried lavender? How much should I use to equal 6 fresh stalks?
ReplyDeleteYes you can use dried lavender blossoms. The general rule of thumb when you switch from fresh to dried is use 1/3 of what you would have used fresh. The lavender I used totaled to a 1/2 Tbs. so I would say to go with a 1/2 tsp. of dried blossoms. I forgot to put that in the recipe. I'll add that in.
ReplyDeleteWhat kind of apples do you recommend?
ReplyDeleteI go to a local orchard for my sauce apples and I usually just get a mix of their seconds. A bushel costs me $16 there so I don't complain. But, if I was picking and choosing my apples I would use Fuji and McIntosh. Although other good apples for sauce are Cortland, Golden Delicious,and Mutsu. This year I used a combination of McIntosh, Cortland and Golden Delicious.
ReplyDeleteDid you can your applesauce? How long did you have it in the hot water bath?
ReplyDeleteI canned the rest of the applesauce I made this year. I ended up canning a bushel. This batch was with the leftover 2 lbs. that I had. I didn't can it for a couple of reasons;
ReplyDelete1. This recipe isn't based off a tested recipe. I get VERY nervous about altering canning recipes. I usually do the math to make sure the pH level stays under the recomended 4.6%.
2. This recipe was a small batch (it only made about 3 cups of sauce) so it wasn't worth canning it.
That being said...if I was going to can it I would adjust the recipe and base it off of a tested one. I would adjust the Ball recipe to look like this: 12 lbs. apples, 4 tbs. lemon juice, 1 Tbs. dried lavender flowers or 3 tbs. fresh blossoms, 6 vanilla beans (I would probably cut this to 4 due to the economics of it), sugar to taste ( I usually use 1/4 cup when canning) and about 1- 1 1/2 cups of apple cider. That would make about 4 quarts. You would process the quarts in a hot water bath for 20 min.
thank you. i may make a batch and just freeze some.
ReplyDeleteThis applesauce is absolutely gorgeous!! I don't think I've ever said that about applesauce before but you have captured it in such a way that makes me want to grab a spoon and dive right in. Beautiful. Also, I love your uses for lavender oil! I adore the smell of lavender and I've never thought to use it around my house the way you do. This is a lovely recipe that I'll be trying very soon.
ReplyDelete