Last Tuesday I looked into my fridge and saw the quart of homemade applesauce I’d brought up last time we’d eaten pork chops. I had canned the apples from one of our trees and since I didn’t have enough pint jars (there are only two of us in our house now) I had to use quarts. What usually happens is that we use it once and the leftovers go bad. Not morally. It just grows white fuzz accompanied by pretty blues and greens on the top. Once the thick purple settles in, it gets disgusting.
I had a sudden impulse to save the sauce, so I googled recipes for applesauce. Oh, and I also had lemons on the counter, and zucchini in the garden. (Anyone want some? No? Okay.) I picked a nice sized zucchini, and peeled (it was larger and the peel was too tough to leave on) and grated it. I also squeezed several lemons and set the juice aside.
First recipe: Lemon Zucchini Loaf. I got sidetracked by the zucchini and lemon juice and forgot about the applesauce, but the loaf was excellent. The glaze was even better. Hubby loved it.
But there sat the applesauce. Google…Applesauce Oat Muffins. They turned out very well, and I added a cup of grated zucchini because that would make them even more moist. Moister?
Still some zucchini left. Google…Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins. This was a good choice as the recipe also called for a banana, and I had three overripe bananas on the counter. Yummy.
The muffins didn’t take as long as I’d thought, and I still had bananas and zucchini left. I found a recipe for Chocolate Banana Applesauce Cake which sounded amazing (I think it tastes excellent, but Hubby prefers the lemon loaf). 
One problem: I had used up all the applesauce in the muffins. So, I went downstairs to get another quart.
Final results: a counter full of yummy treats, fewer lemons, no rotten bananas, and no more grated zucchini…but now I have another partially used jar of applesauce sitting in my fridge.
This story has a moral. When I told a friend about the applesauce saga, she said her late husband’s wise words were: “Your first loss is usually your best loss.” I think we’ll have pork chops again tonight.
P.S. Are you hungry yet? I was no longer hungry by the time I finished baking! Do you have any baking stories to share?
I am often hard-pressed to use up everything in my refrig. It pains me when something spoils. Janice, you gave a good example of applesauce-rescue that produced delightful tasty food. Lately, when I have to throw something out, I console myself that what is thrown out will nourish the earth.
Oh yes. We also have a dog, and a few cows on our yard, so they love the throw-aways.
I hope you’re keeping well. I think autumn is around the corner here.
I enjoyed your post, Janice. I hate leaving food in the fridge to spoil. I miss my big garden space at our own home, because I always dug down peelings, vegetable and fruit scraps, tough lettuce, etc. Where we are renting, we have only a small raised garden that doesn’t provide space for composting. I find there is more going into the garbage than I’m used to. Mind you, I don’t have as much produce to deal with in the fall, and that is a mixed blessing. No chocolate chip zucchini muffins. I shouldn’t have turned down the last offer of zucchini, but my husband is in the hospital and I don’t have time for baking and cooking right now anyway.
I’m sorry to hear your husband is in the hospital. I was hoping to see you at Conference.
Prayers as you handle the challenges in your life.