Combine all ingredients together in 4 qt. sauce pot over medium heat. Stir until sugar dissolves then cover and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for up to 4 hours or until apples are fully mashed.
Apples may be further hand-mashed at this point or mixture can be cooled then run through a food processor to mash to a “butter” consistency.