Start by washing, peeling, and coring your apples. I find it easiest just to do this by peeling and then chunking up the apples. Slice them fairly large - if you cut them too thin, they will get soft when processing.
After processing your apples, get out a stockpot and combine the spices, cornstarch, and sugar.Add the water and salt, then stir well.Bring it to a boil, stirring constantly to prevent sticking, until the mixture is bubbly and thick (like caramel).Remove from the heat and add the lemon juice. You can add a few drops of yellow food coloring to prevent browning if you’d like, too, but this is optional. Place your apples in a large pot with hot water. Boil for one minute. Drain, but keep the apples warm.
While you’re preparing the apples and syrup, you can also sterilize your jars and rings (I prefer to do this in the dishwasher).
Load the sliced apples into hot jars, leaving about a half inch of headspace. Pour hot syrup on top, again leaving half an inch of headspace, and remove air bubbles with a plastic tool.
Put lids on the jars and load the canner. Quarts should be processed for 20 minutes; pints can be processed for 15 minutes.