Homemade Applesauce - No Sugar Added

I am always on the look-out for recipes that work for a friend who cannot have any added sugar and that do not require me to keep anything like Splenda or any other sugar substitute on hand.  Today I am taking this friend a meal that consists of ham steaks, roasted root vegetables and applesauce.  Almost every recipe for applesauce has some form of sugar so I decided to just wing it and make my own.

I started with a 3-pound bag of Gala apples. Why Gala? I don't know. They looked good and I am not a big fan of Granny Smith or Red Delicious.  The price was right at the grocery store.  All but three were peeled. I like to leave the peel on three of them for added texture. All were cored, sliced into small chunks and put into a pan with two thin slices of lemon.

Why lemon? Well, I can't add sugar and a squeeze of lemon always makes my tea taste better so I decided it would probably be just the ticket to helping out with the taste of the apples.

Next I added one teaspoon of cinnamon and I grated in some nutmeg. I did not use ground nutmeg. Don't do it. It only takes a minute to run your nutmeg pod over your micro-plane to get that delicious, fresh nutmeg taste. Fresh nutmeg is often my secret ingredient in many of my dishes.

Add to all of the above about 1 1/2 cups of water and set to boil. After it boils, reduce the heat  and cover the pot. Cook for approximately twenty minutes, giving them an occasional stir.

When they are nice and tender remove the lemon slices and use your handy dandy potato masher and mash the apples.

This applesauce is hearty and earthy. It is not the sweet applesauce of your childhood. It is applesauce all grown-up.  My friends love it because he can eat what he wants without worrying about his diabetes.