apple pie filling
This is a fantastic way of keeping apples on hand for all your favourite homemade recipes. We love it for Apple Pies, Crumbles, with Crepes & Icecream, folded through muffins or spooned over granola.
Great shelf life — and because it doesn't have an acid base, it must be water bathed. Recipe can be varied to suit your taste.
What You'll Need
- Large quantity of Apples (we like a mix of tart & sweet)
- 1 cup White Sugar
- 1 cup Brown Sugar
- 2 tsp Cinnamon Powder
- Pinch of Cardamom Powder
- ¼ tsp Nutmeg
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 cup Sultanas
- 3 cups Water
- 3 cups Apple Juice
- 3 Tbsp Lemon Juice & zest of 1 Lemon
- Arrowroot Powder if needed to thicken
Let's Get Into It
Sterilise your jars first. Pop your GoodLife glass jars into the oven at 100°C for around 20 minutes. Leave them in there until you're ready — they need to stay hot.
Prepare your apples. Peel, core and slice.
Build your filling. Combine the sugars, spices and salt in a large pot, add your apples and sultanas, then pour in the water and apple juice. Cook on a high heat stirring frequently until it comes to a boil. Let it boil for around 5 minutes then add your lemon juice and zest.
Simmer it down. Reduce to a simmer for around 10 minutes. You want it nice and thick but the apples still holding their shape — not breaking down to a puree. (If it needs a little help thickening, make a small slurry of arrowroot powder mixed with cold water and stir through — you don't want it super thick, just a good coating consistency.)
Pack your jars. When you're happy with the consistency, pack your hot apple mix into the hot jars. Leave around 20mm of headspace at the top — we use the bottom rim of the jar lip as our guide, makes it easy.
Run a wooden chopstick or bubble remover stick around the inside of the jar to release any air pockets hiding in the mix.
Seal them up. Wipe the rims with a paper towel dipped in white vinegar. Place on your dome seal lid, then screw your metal band to fingertip tight — thumb & middle finger, a good firm twist without overtightening. Lid must be secure.
Into the water bath. Use your canning tongs to lower jars into your water bath. Make sure you have a trivet on the base of the pot and hot water covering the jars. Jars should not be touching each other. Repeat until your pot is filled.
Water bath for 20 minutes.
Cool & check your seals. Remove jars carefully with canning tongs and place onto a wooden board — never a cold bench surface, you don't want to shock the glass. Leave to cool for a few hours. As they cool, the dome lids will suck down, which tells you they've sealed beautifully. Once fully cooled, remove the bands.
Give the jars a wipe with warm soapy water and store on your shelf.
Tried & Tested in the GoodLife kitchen. Filling the cupboards with jars of goodness — that's the GoodLife.