Whether you’re gluten-free or not, everyone appreciates getting in and out of the kitchen fast on a weeknight. This time, I took a hint for my low-maintenance basic recipe from a seasonal fruit that kept staring at me in the market: apples. In less than 20 minutes, I had my fast fridge fix—warm, homemade Apple Cider Applesauce.

Warning: If you’ve never made apple sauce yourself, I caution you that you may never go back to the jarred stuff. My kids and I ate most of the applesauce straight from the pot for that night’s dessert.

Then, throughout the week, I was ready to get dinner done fast with my easy mix-in mains, like Pork ’n’ Applesauce Hash Brown Waffles or Caramelized Butternut Squash-Apple Soup With Bacon Croutons.

Apple Cider Applesauce
If you can’t find Honey Crisp apples, McIntosh or Granny Smith works great, too.

Makes: about 4 cups

3 pounds apples, preferably Honey Crisp (about 6 apples)—peeled, quartered and cored
1½ cups apple cider, pear cider or water
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
Pinch salt

In a medium saucepan, combine the apples, cider, cinnamon, vanilla, brown sugar, lemon juice and salt; bring to a boil. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the apples are tender, about 18 minutes. Using a wooden spoon, break up the apples until chunky.

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This festive, seasonal squash soup is going to kick off my Thanksgiving meal this year. It whips up pretty easily with an immersion blender, but if you don’t have that tool, running batches through a blender is a simple solution.

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