Canning Homemade Apple Pie Filling

Don’t you just love homemade apple pie? I am the first to admit that my homemade apple pie will never quite live up to the memory of my grandmother’s beautiful basketweave pie crusts but I have found the secret to providing a homemade apple pie in just a few minutes by canning my own pie filling in the fall when the apples are ripe in the local orchard. If you love homemade apple pie and enjoy canning your own food, then this post is for you today! (And if you happen to be at my house for a holiday meal, chances are there will be an apple pie with ice cream ready for dessert!)

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Canning Homemade Apple Pie Filling

We love taking a trip to the local apple orchard to pick our own apples but sometimes schedules don’t allow for a full-day adventure. That’s when it’s great to be able to stop by and purchase fresh apples in the bags. Recently we stopped into Haney’s Appledale Farm and picked up some of our favorite apples and of course a couple of their famous apple pies!

Then it was time to head home and get started. If you have ever made a homemade apple pie, you know that the longest part of the process is peeling the apples. Prepare a large bowl with cold water and some Fresh Fruit Preserver so you can keep your apples from turning brown while you cut your apples.

I follow the recipe for canning apple pie filling from the Canning & Preserving Handbook but if you don’t have that cookbook, then here is a similar recipe.

I use Clear Jel instead of corn starch to help with the consistency and thickness of my pie filling. The Clear Jel doesn’t clump up when cooked after resting in the canning jars. This is the second year I have made my own homemade apple pie filling and the mix is as delicious on month 12 as it is on day 1.

Directions

• Prepare the apples by slicing, peeling and removing the core.
• Soak in water and fruit fresh mixture while you are preparing the other apples.
• Cook the syrup as directed (including cinnamon, clear gel, sugar, lemon juice, apple juice and nutmeg (optional).
• Boil the apple slices for 1 minute before folding into your cooked syrup.
• Ladle into prepared jars.
• Process in a waterbath canner.
• Don’t overfill the jars so you don’t have leakage from the apple pie filling. That gets to be a sticky mess! Trust me, I know from personal experience.
• Remove from the water bath canner and listen for the satisfying popping noise as the jars finish sealing.

Label and store back for winter desserts and family gatherings.

Now when you are ready for a homemade apple pie you can simply pull out a frozen pie crust or make a Jiffy pie crust in minutes and bake a fresh apple pie for your family and friends.

Have you ever canned your own apple pie filling? Got any tips or experiences to share? I’d love to hear!