Welcome to Happylifeblogspot! A food blog with drool worthy recipes
Are you ready for a quick and easy recipe to get dinner on the table in a flash? Well say hello to Apple Cider Pork Chops! Soooo….a few things you’ll absolutely LOVE about this one, it’s on the table in 25 minutes flat, only uses […]
When Fall rolls around everyone has their favorite local spot to buy Apple Cider Donuts, but my new favorite this year might just be homemade. Nothing beats the taste of a hot, fresh Apple Cider Donut right out of the frying pan. There’s something about […]
Fall is officially here and I’m ready for all the Fall things like apple picking!!! I’ve been wanting to go for a few years now but either our schedules or the weather hasn’t allowed for it. Growing up I always looked forward to our school field trips to Becker Farms in Gasport, NY. We’d pick apples in the orchards and learn how cider was made and even get to take home a bag of apples to share with our families. Through the years it’s been so much fun to watch this 340 acre farm blossom and grow into what it is today. Farm trips now include a stop at the brewery for hard cider, beer, and wine, a breathtaking wedding venue, and even private cabins for lodging, to name only a few.
But of course I’ll always have a soft spot for spending time in their orchards. Reservations are required for weekend apple picking so head to their website and be sure to book your time slot in advance. They book us fast! Tickets are not required for Monday-Friday visits. I’d also recommend checking out the picking schedule to see what apples are available each week. At the time of our visit, there were two popular varieties ripe for the picking, Cortland and McIntosh. We loaded up a bag of each! McIntosh apples are perfect for eating fresh, baking and of course applesauce!
Pressure-Cooker Cinnamon Applesauce is the perfect recipe to put a bag go McIntosh apples to good use! I love this recipe because really all you need to do is wash, peel and chop the apples and then the machine does the rest of the work. You can have this one ready to go in under 30 minutes. Amazing, right!?! It’s made with only 5 ingredients so you know exactly just what’s going into your food. And applesauce is one of those quintessentially Fall recipes that you can make and share with your whole family. It’s warm and inviting and laced with Fall spices like cinnamon and nutmeg. Making applesauce is the guaranteed way to make some memories with your family.
Here’s all you’ll need: apples, water, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
This might be one of the easiest recipes on the blog but all that really means is you’ll be making it over and over again and again. Wash, peel and chop the apples. Yep! All of them. So simple!
Place the apples in the pot of the pressure cooker. Cover with 1 cup of water. When pressure cooking you always need some sort of liquid to produce steam. This won’t cover all the apples but will be just enough liquid to produce steam for our cinnamon applesauce. Add 1/3 cup of white sugar, then sprinkle the cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt over top.
Select the manual function, adjust the pressure to highest temperature setting, and set the cook timer for 5 minutes. When the apples are finished cooking, allow the pressure to release naturally.
Mash apples with a potato masher or an immersion blender until smooth. Or for a chunkier applesauce just stir it up with a spoon and your ready to go! And don’t forget the absolute best part of pressure cooking – there’s only one pot to clean! New to pressure cooking? You can see our full review of the Cosori Premium 6-Quart Pressure Cooker here.
Pressure-Cooker Cinnamon Applesauce is best served warm on a chilly day. You can store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 day or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Doesn’t that just look so good? Makes me feel like a kid again!
Put a bag of apples to good use with our Rustic Apple Tart, Apple Hand Pies, or Over the Top Apple Pie Cheesecake!
We’d love to hear from you! Leave us your comments and love down below.
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Happy Fall Y’all! I wanted to share this quick and easy Rustic Apple Tart with you before you get bombarded with all things pumpkin (not that there’s anything wrong with that). But this one’s gonna be for team apple. The delicious little Fall dessert starts […]
Did you have a nice Thanksgiving? We sure did! But…..I am all leftover-ed out. I had just about all the turkey, stuffing, and pie that a girl can handle. And I LOVED every second of it!! Did I mention that my family serves up squash […]
I really, really, REALLY wanted to go apple picking this year! But it seemed like every weekend we were either traveling, or sick, or it was raining. BOO! Oh Fall I had such high expectations for you this year!! So I set my sights on some Fall baking instead. Apple Hands Pies are an easy to make dessert that’s sure to delight. These nostalgic little hand pies are sweet, comforting, and simply adorable. The tender, flaky pie crust is easy to work with and filled with delicious cinnamon-apple filling. And next year they’ll be made with hand picked apples from myself (promise!), but this time around we used the next best thing, locally grown NY State apples!
Here’s all you’ll need: cream cheese, butter, flour, salt, allspice, apples, sugar, cinnamon, egg, and water.
First in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and 1 cup of butter until smooth. You can nuke it in the microwave for a few seconds to soften it up a bit if you need to. Just keep in mind, we want it to be soft, not melted. The addition of cream cheese makes this pie crust absolutely melt in your mouth fabulous!! So I’m not gonna lie, Apple Hand Pies are a little bit of work. But it’s all easy, I promise. And it’s totally worth it!
Next gradually add in the salt and the flour. Toss the salt in first and then using a hand blender, mix the flour in 1/2 cup at a time until well blended. The dough will be a bit sticky. Divide it in half, then shape each half into a ball and flatten slightly into a disc shape. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour to firm.
Once your dough is almost ready to use, start slicing up those apples. We don’t want to prep them too early otherwise they’ll get all brown and mushy. Peel and chop the apples and add them to a large bowl. Top with allspice, cinnamon and 1/3 cup of sugar and toss to coat. Be sure to use a good baking apple and not an eating apple. Yes, there’s a difference. Baking apples tend to be on the softer side while eating apples are more crisp and firm. Look for varieties like Granny Smith, Crispin, Cortland, 20 Ounce, Fortune, Idared, Northern Spy or Rome.
Next remove the dough from the fridge and divide each section into 12 portions. This recipe makes a pretty big batch, 2 dozen Apple Hand Pies to be exact. But trust me when I say you’ll be eating these babies two at a time. Shape each portion into a ball. Then on a lightly floured surface roll each ball into a round, 4-inch mini pie crust. Look how cute the minis are!! Or if you’re a perfectionist, roll the entire ball of dough out into one big pie crust and then cut it into circles using a 4-inch biscuit cutter. Either way will work just fine. I promise they’ll all get eaten!
Place a tablespoon of chopped apples on one side of the mini pie crust. Dot with butter. Basically that means we’re just adding a couple of teeny tiny pieces of butter on top of the apple mixture, because everything’s better with a little butter. Next in a small bowl, combine the egg yolk with 2 tablespoons of water to form an egg wash. Brush one edge of the pastry with the egg wash. The egg wash basically acts as a “glue” to hold everything together. Set aside any remaining egg wash. We’re not quite done with it yet!
To finish fold over half of the pie crust to cover the apples and press down to seal. Crimp down the edges with a fork. Place the finished apple hand pies onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Most of you already know that I use parchment in just about ANY baking recipe, but it’s really essential here to prevent these little mini pies from sticking to the pan. Trust it. Live it. Love it.
In a small bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon. Brush the pie tops with the remaining egg wash and quickly sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar mixture. Lastly cut three itty bitty slits into the top of the apple hand pies so they have some room to breathe.
Bake in a 425 degree preheated oven for 11-14 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to wire racks to cool. Serve warm, or cold, or with caramel sauce for dipping. Apple Hand Pies will disappear quickly no matter how you serve ’em! Looking for more Fall baking ideas? Try our Over the Top Apple Pie Cheesecake!
We’d love to hear from you! Leave us your comments and love down below!
Shop this recipe!
I am SO ready to get my Fall on! Cool weather, pumpkin spice everything, and apple cider……sign me up!! Only the first day of Fall has come and gone and we are still waiting on that chilly weather here in Buffalo. Now normally us Buffalonians […]
Hi There! I’m Lisa. I’m a lover of all things crafty, creative, DIY, and delicious!!! Oh yeah and puppies too! I love cooking and baking for my friends and family but especially WITH my friends and family. I show my greatest affection through food. If I cook or bake for you, it means I really like you!
