My kids love store-bought applesauce! This healthy homemade applesauce for kids is a great alternative. It can be eaten on its own or as a side dish for a delicious Christmas dinner. Hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do!
As a Holistic Nutrition Consultant for babies and a mother of four, I know the value of giving your children healthy foods, especially when it comes to balancing blood sugar levels, giving them enough protein and good sources of fat.
However, sometimes convenient food is easier if you are time-poor. My kids were introduced to store-bought apple puree by my mum a few years ago. Am I mad about it? No! Would I rather my kids have a healthier alternative? Yes. But my kids see it as a treat and given to them occasionally, which makes it extra special.
While store-bought purees seem like a healthy option, as they contain fruit and vegetables, it is simply not the case.
Let’s look at the facts about standard store-bought purees. Now, bear in mind that the below facts aren’t true of every brand, but most:
- An exporter boils down the fruit and vegetables using ultra high heat processing to create a shelf-stable pulp used for jars and pouches.
- These pre-made pulps are then purchased by manufacturers, then boiled with a second round of ultra high heat processing.
- Each time the water is reduced so the sugar content increases, then water is added to reconstitute the pulp.
- Fruit and vegetables contain water-soluble enzymes and vitamins that are sensitive to heat, light and oxygen.
- While the heat ensures that it kills all the bad stuff, like bacteria being formed, it also kills off any remaining nutrient value from the fruit and vegetables.
- These purees also don’t contain the protein, fat and fibre that babies need to help slow down their blood sugar spike that is a result of eating these purees.
While store-bought purees are an easy on-the-go snack, you get my point about why they offer no nutritional value to your baby.
It is also important to note that sadly many manufacturers under report how much sugar truly is in baby foods on the labels (source).
You want to set your baby up for a win when it comes to giving him solids. If you want a guide that can help you with your groceries, then check out my Family Grocery Guide below.
This homemade applesauce can be paired with protein like meat or eaten as a part of a snack plate with cheese, meat and wholegrain crackers, making it a more balanced meal.
What I will cover in this post
- Ingredients
- What you will need
- Method
- Notes about recipe
- Full recipe
Ingredients
All you need for this recipe are:
- Apples (we use red but you can use green too)
- Lemon peel and juice
- Sugar (we use half coconut sugar, half stevia)
- Water (for simmering)
What you will need
- Chopping board
- Sharp knife
- Peeler
- Grater
- Large pot
- Blender
Method
- Peel and chop apples up into small square pieces and set aside
2. Squeeze juice out of lemon and use a grater to grate the lemon
3. Set pot over stove and add water to simmer on medium heat
4. Add apples, lemon and sugar and simmer for 20 minutes to make apples soft
5. Once apples have softened and the liquid has thickened, take pot off stove and leave to cool
6. You can either remove the liquid or keep it in there before blending. I like to pour out about half the liquid and leave the rest in there so that it is not too thick
7. Once cooled, pop apples and liquid in blender and blend until smooth
8. Serve on its own as a snack, on a snack plate or as a Christmas dinner side.
Notes about recipe
This is a really simple recipe. I don’t know the difference between applesauce and apple puree, but I have a feeling it is associated with how it is used, rather than what it contains.
I like using applesauce over simple apple puree because it contains lemon, making it extra sour and adding some more nutritional benefits like an extra dose of vitamin C. I also like that it offers a more sour taste that babies are not often exposed to early on.
When it comes to preparing the apples, I like to peel the skin first. However, there is definitely more nutrient value in the skin, so you can choose to leave the skin on. It is one less step and it does not affect the taste all that much anyway.
You can choose to add as much or as little lemon grind and juice as you please. I find that if I use 6-7 apples, adding half a lemon of juice and grind should be enough.
When it comes to simmering the apples, 20 minutes would be the least amount of time I would simmer for. If you leave it any longer though, you may need to add a little more water every 5 minutes, so that the water does not dry up.
When you go to blend the apples, depending on the consistency you/your baby likes, you can empty out all of the liquid to make it a thick consistency (probably resembling more like store-bought applesauce) or choose to leave some of the liquid in (making it more runny). I like to leave half of it in and remove the rest, making it runny, but not too runny.
For storage, if you are making it for your baby, I suggest separating it out into an ice cube tray and freezing it. If you are using it as a side dish, place it in an air-tight glass container and leave it in the fridge or freezer, depending on how soon you intend to serve it.
Have you made homemade applesauce? If not, are you willing to give this recipe a try?
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Healthy Homemade Applesauce for Kids
Equipment
- 1 Chopping board
- 1 Peeler
- 1 Sharp knife
- 1 Stove pot
- 1 Grater
- 1 Blender
Ingredients
- 6 Red apples
- 1/2 Lemon (juice and grind)
- 1.5 cups Filtered water
- 1/2 cup Sugar (coconut, brown, white or stevia)
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