Here’s a simple, delicious Apple Butter recipe — smooth, spiced, and perfect for toast, biscuits, or even desserts 🍎🥄
🍎 Homemade Apple Butter
🧾 Ingredients
- 4–5 medium apples (about 3 lbs), peeled, cored, and chopped
- 1 cup apple cider or apple juice
- ½–1 cup brown sugar (adjust to taste)
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
🔪 Instructions
1️⃣ Cook the Apples
- In a large pot or slow cooker, combine chopped apples, apple cider, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt.
- Cook over medium heat (or slow cooker on low) until apples are very soft, about 30–40 minutes on the stove or 6–8 hours in a slow cooker.
2️⃣ Blend Smooth
- Use an immersion blender or regular blender to puree the mixture until smooth.
- Return to pot and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until thickened to spreadable consistency, about 30–45 minutes on the stove.
3️⃣ Add Vanilla & Cool
- Stir in vanilla extract.
- Let apple butter cool, then transfer to sterilized jars.
4️⃣ Store
- Refrigerate for up to 3 weeks or freeze for longer storage.
🟢 Tips
- Apple variety: mix sweet (Fuji, Gala) and tart (Granny Smith) apples for balanced flavor
- Thickness: simmer longer for thicker butter; thin with more apple cider if too thick
- Optional spices: add a pinch of ginger or allspice for extra warmth
🔁 Variations
- Pumpkin Apple Butter: add ½ cup pumpkin puree and ½ tsp pumpkin spice
- Maple Apple Butter: replace half the sugar with pure maple syrup
- Spicy Apple Butter: add a pinch of cayenne or black pepper for a sweet-spicy twist
If you want, I can give a super quick 30-minute Apple Butter recipe that’s thick, smooth, and ready without hours of simmering.
Do you want me to do that?