Last week I posted a recipe for homemade apple cider. It was quite popular with my family and as I said last week, if I was ambitious, I would make some apple butter as well. Since I had ten pounds of apples and I was cutting them up anyway, I did go ahead and make apple butter. It was wonderful! Apples are always good for you and this recipe was easy and didn’t have to much sugar. You can sweeten it as you like. If you are using sweeter apples, (I used tart apples) than maybe you will want to add less sugar. You could also substitute honey or any other type of sweetener you prefer.
Thanksgiving is in a few days, and if you are traveling, near or far, this apple butter would be a great gift to take along with you. Just put it in a mason jar and tie a ribbon around it. Or, if everyone is coming to your house, it is great to snack for later after the big meal digests and everyone starts looking around for snacks. It is good on toast, bread, and biscuits. My daughter substituted it for the jelly on her peanut butter and jelly sandwich and loved it. I put some peanut butter on a Wasa cracker and then some apple butter on top of that. Yum! I even sweetened my oatmeal with this apple butter.
I hope you have a very Happy Thanksgiving. If you are traveling, be safe and enjoy the time you are spending with the people you are traveling with. They are your blessings.
Here is the recipe for Homemade Apple Butter
- 12 medium-sized apples
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 Tbls cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp allspice
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1/8 tsp nutmeg
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1/3 cup water
- Peel, core, and roughly chop all the apples.
- In a small bowl, combine the sugars, spices, lemon juice and water.
- Add the apples and the sugar/spice/liquid mixture to a large saucepan. Cover and cook over medium heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Mash up the apples as much as you can, reduce the heat to medium-low, and stir in a splash of water (about a couple of tablespoons). Cook uncovered for another 45 minutes, stirring frequently (every 5 to 10 minutes) so the apples on the bottom don’t burn.
- When the apple butter has reached your preferred consistency, remove the pan from the heat, and allow it to cool for a few minutes. Then, puree it using an immersion blender, food processor or regular blender.
- Let the apple butter cool off before putting it in jars and refrigerate it for up to 5 days. Apple butter can also be frozen.
This recipe yields about 1-1/2 cups.