With San Diego’s seemingly lack of seasons, apple picking is the perfect excuse to head up to the mountains and officially welcome the fall season! Julian’s apple picking season typically opens in early September and runs through mid to late October.
We headed to the Julian Mining Company since they seemed to have the most to explore – cute little goats, a gold/gem panning station, a bottle house, general store, and of course the u-pick orchards! We headed into the General Mercantile store and purchased a large u-pick bag for $12.50 - then into the orchards we went!
The large bag was more than enough between the two of us and we took home nearly 20 apples! We focused on the Granny Smith portions of the orchards since we wanted to use all our apples for baking.
After we were done apple picking, we went back to the Julian Apple Stand (also on site) to scoop up THE cutest pumpkins and gourds! We picked-up some real cuties for only $1/ea and started chatting with Bill, the orchardist of the Julian Apple Stand!
He is THE coolest and SO knowledgeable in his craft! He was more than happy to share with us the different apple varieties and the history behind them. He helped us to hand pick a special bag that included Northern Spy, Black Twigs, and Wolf River apples - and also shared their unique history at the same time! He is so passionate and his excitement and pride for his work was infectious! People like Bill are exactly what make Julian so special. If you head to Julian, please be sure to look him up! Not to mention, his apples are seriously delicious.
After chatting with Bill, we explored the rest of the Julian Station and then headed back down to San Diego to start baking!!
Now that we had all these apples – what to do with them?! The obvious answer was to make applesauce! I’ve been tweaking my applesauce recepie for years.. but this time I think I PERFECTED IT!!
I typically use Bourbon as my full base, but didn’t realize I had so little left! The apples were already cut and on the stove, which meant I WAS COMMITTED TO THIS THING. So what’s any good baker to do? Improvise. And cream soda was my answer. I’ve been on a cream soda kick lately, and thank goodness I was, because this most recent batch has been my BEST YET!! Recipe below!
BOURBON VANILLA APPLESAUCE:
Ingredients:
9-12 Granny Smith Apples
1/2 C Bourbon
1/2 C Cream Soda
1.5 TBSP Vanilla
1C LOOSE (not packed) Brown Sugar
1/3C PACKED Brown Sugar
2 TBSP Cinnamon
Directions:
1. Wash, peel, and cube apples - pour into a large stove pot and set to medium heat.
2. Add Bourbon, Cream Soda, and Vanilla to the pot, stir to combine.
3. Add 1/3C Brown sugar and stir to combine. Repeat with remaining 1C loose brown sugar and cinnamon.
4. Allow apples to soften to consistency of your preference. Feel free to add ingredients to taste!
5. OPTIONAL: I personally like chunky applesauce, but if you prefer a smooth consistency, puree the mixture in a food processor to achieve the consistency you desire!
**I also CANNOT vouch for the health benefits of this applesauce - there’s so much sugar that it begins to be a moot point, but I CAN vouch that it’s delicious.**
And if you STILL have left over apples – this kielbasa with caramelized onions and green apples is WHERE IT’S AT!! I can’t attest to any health benefits of this recipe either, but again - it’s SO GOOD and always puts me in a fall mood!
PAN FRIED KIELBASA WITH CARMELIZED ONIONS AND APPLES
Ingredients:
1 lb. Beef Kielbasa
1/2 TBSP Butter
1 large Yellow Onion
2-3 Granny Smith Apples
2 TBSP Apple Cider Vinegar
1 TBSP Brown Sugar
Cinnamon to taste
Directions:
1. Pan fry Kielbasa, set aside.
2. In the same pan (now empty, but not washed), add 1/2 TBSP butter and cook onions until translucent.
3. Add cubed apples, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, and cinnamon to the pan with the onions. Cook until caramelized.
4. Add Kielbasa back to pan to warm mixture together - then serve!
So, happy rambles AND baking on this post! For those of you who know me, I used to be a pretty serious baker! If you’re interested in seeing more of my favorite recipes on here, always feel free to give me a holler.
