Apple Pie Filling

Ingredients:

6 pounds apples
2 c. sugar
1/4 c. flour
1 1/2 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. nutmeg
2 T. lemon juice

Directions:

Wash, peel, core, and slice apples. Treat to prevent darkening. Combine sugar, flour, and spices. Rinse and drain apples; stir into sugar mixture. Let stand until juices begin to flow, about 30 minutes. Stir in lemon juice. Cook over medium heat until mixture begins to thicken. Ladle pie filling into can-or-freeze jars or plastic freezer boxes, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. (I use zip-top freezer bags so they can lie flat in the freezer.) Cool at room temperature, not to exceed 2 hours. Seal, label, and freeze.

This makes about 2 deep dish fillings or 3 regular/thin pies worth of filling.

Submitted by Jen Lee from the Ball Blue Book of Preserving