What’s more autumn than apple butter?! That sweet, yet tart taste hitting your tongue is wonderful, and the fragrance of the warm spices wafting to your nose is unforgettable. And most don’t realize that apple butter can easily be made at home – without a lot of equipment. All it takes is the right ingredients and a little muscle.
From apples to apple butter – apple-solutely delicious!
Photo Credit: Suzanne Wainwright-Evans
Cooking the apples can take awhile on the stovetop, but the reward is well worth it!
Photo Credit: Suzanne Wainwright-Evans
Ingredients
- 8 lbs apples (a mix of different apples always tastes best)
- 2 cups apple cider
- 2 cups vinegar
- 2½ cup white sugar
- 2½ cups packed brown sugar
- 2 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tbsp cloves
Directions
Yields 8-9 pints
Wash all the apples thoroughly, and remove the stems. Cut the apples into quarters and put into a large pot. Add the apple cider and the vinegar, then turn the stovetop to medium-high. Stir occasionally and cook until the apples are soft and mushy. At this point, remove the apples from the heat, and put the mixture through a food mill. This will remove the excess skins and seeds.
Return the cooked apples, which will resemble thin applesauce at this point, to the large pot, and add the sugar and spices. Turn the range top on low, and stir frequently. (Be careful here: I’ve burned a few batched by not paying attention.) This part of the process can take a few hours, depending on the moisture content of the apples and such. As time goes on, the sauce will get thicker and thicker.
Keep cooking your apple butter until the consistency is nice and thick. You can test it to see if it’s ready by spooning some out onto a plate and holding it at an angle. When liquid doesn’t run from the apple butter, you’ll know it’s finished.
Now you can put the apple butter into containers and keep them refrigerated until use, or you may can it. To do this, sterilize your jars and fill them with apple butter. Be sure to leave one-quarter-inch head space. Keep the lip of the jar clean, and screw it on. Place the jars in a hot water bath and process them according to the table below. Your canned apple butter should last a year.
| | Processing time at altitude of: |
| Style of Jar Pack |
Jar Size |
0-1,000 ft |
1,001-6,000 ft |
Above 6,000 ft |
| Hot |
Half-pints or pints |
5 min |
10 min |
15 min |
| |
Quarts |
10 min |
15 min |
20 min |
| From the “Complete Guide to Home Canning”, Agriculture Information Bulletin No. 539, USDA. Reviewed 1994 |
That’s all there is to it! You can enjoy the delicious taste of fall all year-round by canning your own apple butter. It makes great gift for the holidays, too! So get your apples now, when they’re at their prime, and get cooking!
