Name: Apple-Mustard Grilling Sauce
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 2/3 cup apple cider or apple juice; 1/3 cup apple butter; 3 tablespoons whole-grain mustard; 1 teaspoon dry mustard; 2 tablespoons cider vinegar; 1/2 teaspoon table salt; 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper; 1/3 cup water; 1/3 cup sugar

Why This Recipe Works

In lieu of the chemical emulsifiers that manufacturers rely on to built viscosity, we came up with an unconventional thickener to use in our Apple-Mustard Grilling Sauce recipe: caramel. It was super-adhesive, tacky, and quick to prepare. We also wanted our Apple-Mustard Grilling Sauce recipe to have a balance of sweet-tangy flavors and a spicy kick, so we paired apple butter with whole-grain mustard and then flavored it with cayenne pepper and cider vinegar for heat and tang.

Instructions

Whisk cider, apple butter, whole-grain and dry mustards, vinegar, salt, and cayenne in medium bowl.

Place water in heavy-bottomed 2-quart saucepan; pour sugar in center of pan, taking care not to let sugar crystals adhere to sides of pan. Cover and bring mixture to boil over high heat; once boiling, uncover and continue to boil until syrup is thick and straw-colored, 3 to 4 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and continue to cook until syrup is golden amber, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Quickly remove saucepan from heat and whisk in apple-mustard mixture. Return to medium heat and cook, whisking constantly, until caramel has dissolved and sauce has thickened, about 2 minutes. Transfer ½ cup sauce to medium bowl to use for grilling. Set aside remaining sauce for serving.