'Tis the Season: Apple Pie Filling & Apple Crisp

Got apples?

I hope so...you're going to love this apple pie filling!

I've had some requests for it so here it finally is!

And, if you get carried away, and really have access to lots of apples and jars, you can make some to give as Christmas gifts. That's what I did for friends and family last year, and put a topping and a recipe card I made in with the pie filling for a wonderful APPLE CRISP gift set in a brown craft-paper gift bag. I got a lot of positive feedback from the recipients!

Last year, Michigan had such a bumper crop of apples, they left a lot of them on the trees because they couldn't even sell them all, and I got a beautiful bushel of seconds for $6....an epic bargain.

This year, there was a Mother's Day weekend frost in parts of Michigan, and I may not get so lucky. I am expecting to pay double or even triple, but I will because I love having all the goodness that bushel of apple brings to us all year long!

Last year, I was able to make a ton of applesauce and three batches of apple pie filling, too from that one bushel of apples!

Chilled applesauce is one of my favorite bedtime snacks...!

To be honest, I liked this apple pie filling much better for the "crisp" than I liked it for pie!

I think if you're using this filling for pie, it could use a tad bit more sugar, because pie crust has no sweetness to it at all. The apple crisp has some brown sugar in the topping, making the combination of it and this filling just perfect in sweetness.

So are you ready to make a mess?

Because you WILL make a mess, guaranteed!

But, the mess will make your whole house smell really, really good!

And, it will make you feel like fall is really, really here!

**Making this convenient pie filling and processing it means that your apples are pre-shrunk, and the quantity of it as it sits in the jar of pie filling will be the same amount that comes out of the oven in your pie, cobbler, or crisp.

Here's the recipe:

APPLE PIE FILLING

20 Apples washed, peeled, cored, and sliced

(let slices rest in a bowl with water and 1 T. lemon juice to prevent fruit from browning)

In a large saucepan bring the following to a boil and stir until thick and pours like a thick sauce from your spoon, approximately ten-twelve minutes.

10 c. water

5 c. sugar

1 c. cornstarch

2-1/2 t. cinnamon

1 t. nutmeg

1 t. salt

Once the sauce is done, remove the pan from heat and add to it

3 T. lemon juice

Pack apple slices into jars until almost to the top of the jar.

Ladle hot sauce over apples within 1/2" of jar top.

Seal with lids and rings and process jars for about 20 minutes.

Remove from canner and cool completely and make sure jars are sealed before storing.

(This was done using a regular canner, not a pressure cooker.)

Yeild: 6 BEAUTIFUL Quarts!

If a jar does not seal, keep it in fridge and use it sooner rather than later!

Want to make a good, chunky apple crisp?

Here's my FAVORITE

APPLE CRISP RECIPE

Use just the topping recipe with your canned apple pie filling!

AUTUMN APPLE CRISP

3/4 c + 1/2 T. all purpose flour

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. old-fashioned oats

1 tsp cinnamon

1 stick cold butter, in chunks

1/2 c. chopped pecans, chopped

2-1/2 lb. apples, peeled and

1/2 c. dried cranberries*

1/4 c. maple syrup**

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

1. For the topping, put 3/4 c. flour, sugar, oats, cinnamon and butter in a food processor and pulse to form moist clusters. Mix in pecans.

2. *USE YOUR CANNED APPLE PIE FILLING or...

Cut the peeled apples into 1/2" chunks and put them into a buttered 9-1/2", 2 qt. pie pan (or use an 8 x 8" pan, I used glass).

Add cranberries, maple syrup, and 1/2 T. flour; mix. Scatter on the topping.

3. Bake at 375 degrees for 40-50 minutes or until bubbly and top is crisp along the edges. Serve warm, at room temp, or chilled.

Can be reheated in the microwave and served with a petite scoop of vanilla ice cream, as shown.

This apple crisp is delicious and I think it's important to use the old-fashioned oats, and the chopped pecans are PERFECT in a crisp topping, making it more crisp than usual!

*Dried cranberries are optional, but they make this apple crisp way better than good!

**I didn't happen to have any maple syrup on hand when I made this, and it turned out excellent anyway.