APPLE BUTTER: Go Grandma mode this Fall and make everyone love you with this recipe!

Today we are making one of my favorite fruit preserves of all time: Apple Butter. Despite the name, apple butter doesn't actually contain any butter or dairy for that matter. The name comes from the smooth, silky consistency that the jam has at the end of the cooking. The process is ultimately fairly simple and is a great way to use up large amounts of apples that you might be trying to get rid of once everyone is sick of apple pie. I will provide a recipe below but feel free to play around with the amount of sugar, spices, and vinegar to suit your own taste. And in the video I don't can this product but if you do, make sure to follow the proper procedures.
Apple Butter:
-4 pounds (about 2 kilos) apples. (any apples will do but I especially like to use a variety for the sake of flavor. Also don't be afraid to use imperfect apples that have gone a little soft. Just trim off any blemishes or bad spots)
-Brown and White Sugar (amount will vary depending on how much apple puree you end up with but plan on somewhere between 2-3 cups or 350-450 grams. Do a 50-50 mix of the sugars)
-1/2 cup of apple cider vinegar (115g)
-1 cup unfiltered apple cider (230g)
-1 tablespoon cinnamon
-1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
-1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Procedure:
1. Wash apples and then cut into quarters. Trim away the stem and papery "blossom" end of the apple, leaving the core and seeds intact.
2. Once the apples have been quartered, add them to a large heavy bottomed pot with a 1/2 a cup of water. Cover and set over medium high heat, cooking and stirring occasionally until the apples have begin to soften significantly. This should take around 15 minutes.
3. When the apples are soft enough, transfer them to a food mill and process until all the apples have passed through, making sure to scrape down the bottom of the food mill. If you do not have a food mill, scoop the cooked apples in small batches into a sieve set over a bowl. Using the flat part of a large spoon, press on the apples until you have nothing left behind but the seeds and skins. Make sure the scrape the bottom of the sieve as you go.
4. With all the apples processed, measure the yield and transfer the puree back to the heavy pot. Add sugar based on how much apple pulp you ended up with (see above). Also add the apple cider and apple cider vinegar at this point.
5. Set the apple, sugar, vinegar, cider mix over medium low, cover and stir often for about 2 hours or until the mixture has thickened significantly and turned a deep mahogany color.
6. To finish, use an immersion blender, regular blender, or food processor to blend the apple butter until it is very smooth. At this point you can either follow canning procedures or simply cool the apple butter and store it in containers under refrigeration. Properly made apple butter can last up to 10 months but there is no guarantee of this so make sure to keep an eye on it and discard it if it begins to mold.
How to enjoy:
For me the simplest applications are the best. Apple butter is delicious spread on a toasted piece of buttered bread, or on a buttery southern style biscuit if you have some on hand. It is great as a condiment for a cheese plate. If you like sweet savory combinations it could be nice on a roasted turkey sandwich. I gave some to my talented baking and pastry friend and she was using it as a filling for croissants and other layered pastries. It can also be swirled into a plain or vanilla ice cream to create an "apple pie and ice cream" flavor. Also if you do end up going the canning route it makes a wonderful gift for friends and loved ones.

[@debbielawhorne4603]

Your process is the closest to mine that i have found thank you

[@cooking_with_tristan]

After making it a few years back to back without a favorite recipe I decided to finally commit to making my own version which is the combination of several different recipes. But yeah it can be so daunting when looking up recipes for jams and preserves because they can be very very different from one another. Old recipes will sometimes call for crazy amounts of sugar and some only explain how to make it in a slow cooker. Sounds like you got it figured out though!

[@rebeccasnook1]

I will definitely be doing this ! Looks great 👍😊

[@cooking_with_tristan]

Love to hear that! Let me know how it turns out!

[@rebeccasnook1]

@@cooking_with_tristan Indeed, I will 🙂

[@katharinakck7542]

Me too. Just started the process. 😊

[@cooking_with_tristan]

@@katharinakck7542hope it turns out delicious!