Splish Splosh Apple Sauce

I loved apple sauce as a kid. As a matter of fact I still do. My kids on the other hand, they don't love it as much as I do. Max will have a bowl here and there but his life won't end if he doesn't eat any.

So why am I going to share my apple sauce recipe today? Because even though we don't eat apple sauce on its own we do go through it pretty fast. Apple sauce happens to be one of the main ingredients in the fruit roll up recipe that I use. It can also be a stepping stone if you choose to make your own baby food.

 This recipe is so easy, you don't have to add anything to it but a little bit of lemon juice and cinnamon, which, now that I'm writting this I totally forgot to add today! I still got the thumbs up from Max so all is not lost!

Here's what you will need

Apples, a bunch of apples
I used the Macintosh apples. The ones you can get already in a bag
Lemon juice
Water
Cinnamon

First thing to do is to peel, core and cut your apples.

Place your apples in a large pot, add about 2 tbsp of lemon juice and 1/2 cup of water and cook partially covered on medium low stiring here and there until the apples are soft.

Once the apples are cooked you can either mash them with a potato masher until it isn't so chuncky (unless you like it that way) or you can put the cooked apples through a food mill if you have one. I was lucky enough to be gifted a food mill for Christmas so that's what I have been using.

After you have mashed or milled the apples you can add the cinnamon to taste or forget it all together like I did.

I jar my apple sauce just so it doesn't take up room in the fridge.

You can do this if you like but it's usually fine in the fridge for a couple of weeks depending on how much you make. You can also freeze it in ice cube trays if you are using it as baby food.

I ended up with about 11 cups of apple sauce.

The great thing about this recipe is that it's incredibly simple and easy to play with. If you don't want 11 cups of apple sauce, don't use so many apples.  If you would like it a bit sweeter then add some honey or brown sugar. The possibilities are endless!

Enjoy!

Pancakes for breakfast anyone?!

Pancakes.  Pancakes are a very serious business in our family and have been since I was a kid. There's nothing better then a fluffy pancake to start your day off or to end your day with. Who doesn't love breakfast for dinner?

Over the years I've tried a lot of boxed mixes from the store then a few from scratch always in search of the best tasting pancake.

I found that the boxed mixes were very handy and quick but they always left me feeling like I had a big lump in my tummy. Making the pancakes from scratch,  like anything, always taste better but takes a bit more time and effort.

This left me wondering. How I could get the best of both worlds?

Pinterest will know!

I went online and looked at all of the homemade pancake mixes I could find. The general mixes were pretty much all the same, it's what you do with the mix when you are ready to make pancakes that's the trick.

 Here is the mix recipe

12 cups flour

1/2 cup sugar

6 tbsp baking powder 

4 tap baking soda

2 tsp salt

 This is the recipe doubled because we do really eat a lot of pancakes 

Give everything a quick whisk and store in an air tight container.

Okay, now you're standing in the kitchen, your kids are whining for food. Don't panic, here's what to do!

Take out your trusty homemade pancake mix.

In a mixing bowl add

2 cups pancake mix

2 cups milk

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

Whisk all the ingredients together. Don't be worried if it's a little lumpy.

A quick note...I use soured milk instead of regular milk. In this case in a 2 cup measuring cup add 2 tbsp of lemon juice or vinegar then fill up the measuring cup to 2 cups and give it a few minutes to curdle. I usually do this step first and get everything else ready. Usually by that time the milk is ready.

Now just make your pancakes like you normally would and top with your most favorite toppings! We are partial to homemade strawberry jam but, to each his own.

This recipe usually makes 12 good size pancakes.

If you have homemade mixes that are a staple in your home please share! It's always nice to take one thing off the grocery list!