Recipe for Crock Pot Canned Apple Pie Filling & a FREE Hat Cutout!

Autumn. 

I ♥ this time of year especially, particularly the type we are enjoying this year. Long, hot days, and nights which cool down enough to make me think about bringing out my down quilt so I can be like a bird and tuck my snout under it’s fluffy warmth. 

I savor watching the Pink Lady apples begin to blush in their own particular color which almost vibrates or glows.  It almost tricks my eyes into seeing the super-saturated images which one might expect only after processing them in  Photoshop.  Rows of these pretty trees against the backdrop of the brilliant blue of fall afternoons has me thinking in poetry, wanting to paint - somehow capture part of what I’m seeing and transform it into a creation. 

I also feel this pull to preserve the bounty of fruit and veggies which abound - thinking ahead to how much I’ll enjoy the efforts on some cold winter’s day in the future.  It’s that thought which propels me to bring out the canner and dehydrators and get busy. 

While my mother in law was visiting we spent some precious elbow-to-elbow time doing just this and sharing family memories all the while.  Isn’t it funny, I remember doing “chores” like this as a kid and some of those “work” times turned out to be the greatest times to connect.  I’ve learned so much family history this way. 

The Gala apples were picked a few weeks ago so I decided I might like to try some Canned Apple Pie Filling, something I’ve done in the past, but this year I wanted to simplify the process a bit.  I decided to use my crock pot to make it!   It turned out to be a success.

Here’s my recipe, you may want to monkey with it a bit (adjust the sugar perhaps?  I cut mine way back) 

 

Barb’s Crock Pot Canned

Apple Pie Filling

 

Supplies:

Canning Jars (you decide, pints or quarts) Rings and Sealer Lids

Canner

Funnel

slotted spoon

ladle or coffee cup

old towel (to place jars on)

 

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups White or Brown Sugar

1 1/4 cups Corn Starch

1 1/2 tbsp Cinnamon

1/2 tsp Nutmeg

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp salt

10 cups ( or fill average sized Crock Pot to within 1” of rim)

3 1/2 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice

2 drops yellow food coloring (optional)

6 lbs Apples (you can adjust - if you find more or less work for you)

 

Method:

Mix Sugar, Corn Starch, Spices, Salt together in Crock Pot.  Slowly add water, mixing well as you go.  Cook on HIGH for 30 minutes, then LOW for 5-6 hours or overnight.  Add food coloring and lemon juice.

Sterilize your jars and lids - keep jars warm in oven taking them out one by one as you fill them with apples and syrup.

Peel, core and slice apples (I actually cutting more in “chunks” than slices will allow you to pack more in the jars)  Add the apples into jars until you can’t pack any more in (I “shake” the jar several times while filling with the apples so they pack themselves in closely)  Fill jar to about 1 inch from the top.

Using a ladle or coffee mug with a handle, pour hot syrup through the funnel over the apples in the jar to within 1/2 inch of rim.  Push a knife blade down the side a few times as you fill to allow any air bubbles to escape.  Wipe the rim clean, add Sealer Lids and then rings.  Make sure they are firmly screwed down. 

Assemble in basket for the Canning Bath.  Process 30 minutes. (I do this for both sizes)

My mother in law taught me this good tip - place your processed jars onto the middle of an old bath sized towel on a flat surface.  Bring the sides of the towel up over the jars so that they will not be affected by drafts.  Drafts can sometimes cause problems! 

Once cooled, carefully check your jars have all sealed (the lids will be indented, not flat) and then store them in a cool place.  You may want to thicken this filling up further upon opening with more cornstartch - or you can use it as a syrup topper for pancakes and waffles or for an upside down cake. 

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I also have a FREE template for YOU today - I found these darling little feathers one day on a walk and got an idea in my head for a card.

I’m not totally thrilled with my big fat lettering for this card, but I admit I was rushed.  I also think at some point in the future I will create a more feminine version of a hat, but all in all it’s pretty cool.  So, I’d like to share this cut with you!  It has the slots so that you can thread 1/4 inch ribbon through the slots and make a pretty bow.  When I create a woman’s hat I think it would mean using a nice flurffy soft feather, right?

 

Barb Derksen’s Feather In Your Cap

DOWNLOAD

.studio, png, svg and dxf

 

Speaking of “a feather in your cap” - I am adding a link into my sidebar for BC’s newest scrapbooking store - Memory Junction in Kamloops.  And guess what guess what guess what???    Melissa carries the CAMEO!  So exciting!  I hope all of us “Silhouette People” might check out the Memory Junction store online!  Congrats Melissa, I look forward to meeting you in person one day in the future.   You can also visit the Facebook page (and leave some comment ♥) HERE

 

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