Description
Make rich, smooth apple butter using your slow cooker. This simple recipe requires minimal hands-on time and yields a flavorful spread perfect for toast or baking.
Ingredients
Scale
- 4 lbs apples (like McIntosh or Fuji), peeled, cored, and quartered
- 1 cup apple cider
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed (or substitute with 1/4 cup maple syrup for less refined sugar)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Place the apple quarters and apple cider into the basin of your slow cooker.
- Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours, or until the apples are very soft and easily mashable.
- Carefully transfer the cooked apples and liquid to a blender or use an immersion blender directly in the slow cooker. Blend until completely smooth.
- Return the smooth mixture to the slow cooker. Add the brown sugar (or maple syrup), cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and salt. Stir well to combine.
- Cook on low, uncovered, for another 2 to 4 hours, stirring every 30 minutes. This allows the mixture to thicken to a spreadable consistency.
- If you prefer a very thick butter, remove the lid and switch the setting to high for the last hour, stirring frequently.
- Remove from the slow cooker. Let cool slightly before transferring to clean jars for storage in the refrigerator or proceed with water bath canning instructions if preserving.
Notes
- For a no-sugar-added version, omit the brown sugar and increase the cooking time slightly to achieve the desired thickness. The natural sugars in the apples will concentrate.
- If you want a less smooth texture, mash the apples by hand instead of blending completely.
- To use this apple butter as a glaze, thin it slightly with a tablespoon of water or apple juice before brushing onto pork or chicken during the last 15 minutes of cooking.
- Prep Time: 20 min
- Cook Time: 10 hours
- Category: Preserves
- Method: Slow Cooking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 tablespoons
- Calories: 85
- Sugar: 20
- Sodium: 1
- Fat: 0
- Saturated Fat: 0
- Unsaturated Fat: 0
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 22
- Fiber: 1
- Protein: 0
- Cholesterol: 0