Apple Butter Recipe

We ran out of jam once again! I went to the store to buy some strawberries to make more but they were out. This inspired me to make jam out of apples, which are in season right now. Apple Butter is just apple jam. You can use it on toast, on pork or mix it in your oatmeal (yummy). It takes a really, really long time to make but it is fairly easy. If you have a food processor it is super easy. The most labor intensive part of making this recipe is washing, peeling, coring and finely chopping the apples. Once that part is done, all you have to do is mix in the spices and sugar and let it cook. I ended up cooking mine for a very long time, about 20 hours. I have a new slow cooker and I find that it takes longer than most recipes call for. Hopefully yours cooks in the normal time (14 hours). Even if it does take almost 2 days, its very low maintenance. I thought that it might be done before I went to bed but I was really tired and didn't want to wait. So I added some water, turned it down and put the cover back on. When I woke up it looked exactly like it did before I went to bed.  

Plan ahead, this can take up to 2 days to finish cooking. 
You need a slow cooker for this recipe. 

Ingredients:


8 large apples, about 5 1/2 lbs (I used honey crisp because they are my favorite)
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar (adjust level according to how sweet your apples are)
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves (or you can use ground allspice if you prefer)
1/4 teaspoon of salt


Yields 32 ounces 


Time: 30 minutes prep and 14 hours cook time.


Directions:

Wash, peel, core and finely chop apples (the finer the apples are chopped, the smoother the jam). Put apples in slow cooker and mix with spices and sugar. 

I got lazy... so my apples aren't that finely chopped :)

Cover and cook on high for 2 hours.

Turn to down medium (low setting if you only have 2 settings) and continue to cook for 10 hours (longer if using low setting). Apples should be a dark brown. Remove cover and continue to cook for 1-2 hours until it reaches the consistency you want. 

I took half the mixture out because it was the consistency of apple sauce and let the rest cook down for an additional hour until it was thick enough for jam. I plan on mixing the thinner version in my oatmeal and serving it with pork dishes.

And the thicker mixture for toast and scones. 

Let cool completely and store in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.