I have Lifecycles to thank for my first venture of apple picking in one of Victoria’s most beautiful orchards. Lifecycles is a not for profit organization dedicated to cultivating awareness and initiating action around food, health, and urban sustainability in the area. They have their hands in the right barrels so to speak, and they are always looking for more volunteer fruit pickers.
After a few hours of climbing ladders and dodging falling apples, all the volunteers divvied up the findings and reaped the rewards. As you can see from the pictures we ended up with a nice variety of different apples (and some grapes, quince and pears).
So then the question arises… what are you going to do with 20lbs of apples? First off, Thanksgiving apple pies, followed by morning fresh apple and kale juices. Then Ginger Spiced Apple Sauce because why not! Apple sauce is no longer the pureed slop you thought it was, this recipe was inspired by the beautiful blog Green Kitchen Stories. Go on, give it a try :)
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Ingredients for Ginger Spiced Apple Sauce
1 kg (or 2.2 pounds) of freshly picked apples
1.5 cups water
2 tbsp. minced or grated fresh ginger
8 cardamom pods
1-2 cinnamon sticks
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 lemon juice and zest
2 tbsp. organic fair trade cane sugar (optional)
Method for Ginger Spiced Apple Sauce
Clean apples well if you are leaving the skin on (fibre be goodness!). Core and roughly chop them.
Place chopped apples with the remaining ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 30-40 minutes. Stir regularly and add more water if it becomes too thick. It is ready when the apples are nice and soft.
Remove the cardamom pods and cinnamon sticks when done.
If you aren’t eating all the sauce right away put it into sterilised jars. To sterilise jars, boil jars for 10 minutes and then add the apple sauce. If you want to go that extra step, screw on the lids and boil the filled jars for an extra 10 minutes.
Now your sauce should stay fresh for a few months. Once you open you may have to eat within the week.
Rachel Dickens, The Conscious Dietitian, is a Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator. She graduated with her Masters in Nutrition and Dietetics in 2010 from Griffith University. She strives to provide evidence-based nutrition information with a focus on plant-based nutrition, and share some of her favourite seasonal recipes and sustainable eating tips.
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