Wednesday, November 2, 2016

Making Apple Butter


A couple weeks ago I was sitting at my desk at work and it struck me.  Hard.  I wanted some apple butter.  My mouth watered too when I thought about peanut butter and apple butter sandwiches, apple butter on waffles or pancakes, apple butter on a slice of toast.  I realized I needed to make some apple butter.  Soon.

So I did.  


I stopped at a fruit stand on my way home from the bank and picked out eight pounds of assorted apples.  After washing them up in the kitchen sink I quartered each apple and remove the core.  I saved the trimmings for the chickens which made them incredibly happy.



I don’t peel my apples when I make applesauce or apple butter so once they were all cored I cut them into bite sized pieces and filled up my largest slow cooker.  I let them cook down all day, stirring occasionally, and once they were good and soft I used a potato masher to really pulverize them.


Then I stirred in five cups of sugar, two teaspoons cinnamon, one teaspoon of nutmeg and one teaspoon of clove.  I let it cook another two hours and it was done.  My taste testers declared it delicious so I knew it was ready to be processed.


I ladled it into hot sterilized jar, topped them with sterilized canning jar lids and rings.  I processed the jars in a hot water bath for 15 minutes and then removed them to cool on a folded dish towel.  They all pinged and sealed up nicely.


The next morning I removed all of the rings and washed up the jars in hot soapy water to remove any residue from canning.  Once they dried I put on some cute little labels I made on my computer and some address label stock I happened to have on hand.


This batch made up twelve half pint jars of apple butter to add to our pantry and enjoy.  There was also a little left over to enjoy right away and it was every bit as good as I had imagined.  It was great on a peanut butter sandwich too.

Do you make apple butter?



10 comments:

  1. Oh, yum! I love apple butter, especially apple butter doughnuts.

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  2. I have never made applebutter. But I did put up 11 full quarts of chunky applesauce. I don't peel my apples either. Too much goodness being thrown away. I love applebutter. Nothing better on a piece of toast. Ya know, those pretty jars would be a quick Christmas gift too.

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    Replies
    1. I have a few set aside for giving out at Christmas (shhh). Homemade apple sauce is the best. I like mine chunky too. :)

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  3. You are one busy person! No moss grows under your feet! LOL

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    1. I don't sit well. I sit a lot at my job so when I'm home I'm like a fart in a whirlwind, as my grandmother would say. Ha, ha!

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  4. I do make apple butter. I do not use that much sugar! Sounds like 5 cups is a lot if you have nice sweet apples. I like to taste the apples. I thought that from earlier posts that you were trying to cut down on sugar. I guess it is the holiday season so throw caution to the wind. Happy Thanksgiving! Nice to have family to spend the day with.

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    Replies
    1. Wow. Not sure what to say to all that.

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    2. Totally took that the wrong way. You are good at redoing your recipes. Maybe look at ways to reduce the sugar if that is what you are doing right now. With the right apples you just could cut out lots of that sugar and be fine. It will taste great. Work with your recipe this year and see what you think. Again, Happy Thanksgiving

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    3. You are right in that I didn't take your comments as intended. I initially saw your remarks as hyper critical of my efforts and was surprised by them as they seemed more hurtful than helpful.

      I guess when it comes to making as big a batch of apple butter as this one made I don't see it as too much sugar. The recipe filled 12+ jars. When compared to a batch of jam its about half the sugar. I think it boils down (no pun intended) to personal preference. I happen to love this recipe and will probably stick with it. I admit I like my apple butter on the sweet side.

      Enjoy your Thanksgiving as well. :)

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