[Jeffrey] Grandma Ruth used to make blush red applesauce from local Massachusetts apples that she sweetened with pears and plums and spiced with cinnamon. I would’ve gulped it straight from the jar, had my mother let me. But Grandma never visited us in New Jersey for Hanukkah, when apples were at the end of their season in the Northeast and when latkes required gobs of the stuff, so my mother and I took matters into our own hands. It soon became our ritual. My job was to run the fruit, with seeds and skin, through the food mill, extracting all the saucy pulp. I haven’t stopped since.

Applesauce is a great way to utilize bruised or imperfect fruit. The variety of apple doesn’t matter too much; the sweeter the apple, the sweeter the sauce. This recipe also calls for pears, which provide natural sweetness, as well as apple juice or cider, which adds a deeper and sweeter flavor. (But water is a fine substitute for juice or cider—it means one less item to purchase, and depending on how I’m consuming my applesauce, I sometimes prefer it a little less sweet.) Serve on Pierogi and Root Vegetable Latkes. You can also swirl some into Grandma Fay’s Applesauce Cake or gulp it from a jar at the kitchen counter. This apple-pear sauce freezes and cans well, so do not hesitate to double the recipe and save some for later use.

If you have a food mill, simply quarter your unpeeled apples 8 and pears—no need to core them. In step 2, run the fruit through

the food mill into a large bowl instead of mashing or pureeing.

Serving Size

Makes 5 to 6 cups sauce

Ingredients

• 2 pounds baking apples (about 6 medium), such as McIntosh, peeled, cored, and quartered

• 2 pounds sweet pears (about 5 medium), such as Bartlett, peeled, cored, and quartered

• 1⁄2 cup apple juice, apple cider, or water

• 2 cinnamon sticks

• 1 to 4 tablespoons maple syrup or sugar (optional)

• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (optional)

Instructions

1. In a large, heavy-bottomed pot, combine the apple and pear quarters, apple juice, and cinnamon sticks and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 30 to 40 minutes. The apples will soften and puff up a bit as the heat draws out their liquid. When you can smush the fruit by pressing on it with a spoon, it has finished cooking.

2. Turn off the heat and remove the cinnamon sticks. Mash the mixture with a potato masher or an improvised masher (an empty jar works well). For a smooth applesauce, puree using an immersion blender or food processor.

3. If you’d like your sauce sweeter, stir in the maple syrup or sugar (start with

   1 tablespoon and add more if needed). Stir in the lemon juice, if using, which adds a bit of tartness to balance out the sweetness. Let the sauce cool.

4. Serve at room temperature. The sauce will keep in the refrigerator for about a month. If storing for later use, transfer to an airtight container

   and freeze, or follow the canning instructions on page 325.

Excerpted from the book THE GEFILTE MANIFESTO by Jeffrey Yoskowitz & Liz Alpern. Copyright © 2016 by Gefilte Manifesto LLC. Reprinted with permission from Flatiron Books. All rights reserved. Photography by Lauren Volo.