Slow Cooker Apple Butter
Fall is apple season, and we now have a huge variety of amazing apples available to choose from every year. Most years, we pack up the family and head to the apple orchard and pick too many apples while enjoying warm apple cider and delicious apple cider donuts. This year, having to take Covid precautions, we forgo our yearly trip to the orchard, and instead, I purchased bags of locally grown apples at the grocery store.
I love apple anything, and since my Italian last name translates as apples, it shouldn’t be surprising. When we were renting our vacation home in Umbria, Italy, I baked an apple cake for each group of guests upon their arrival. If you look through the blog, I have a LOT of apple cakes variations, and I am always on the lookout for new ones.
This year, I decided to make apple butter, which I haven’t made for years. I made it in my slow cooker and had it cooking all day long, enjoying the aroma of warm spices wafting through my house. Once the apples are meltingly tender, I cooked them on high heat to reduce the liquid and then pureed them in my blender.
This butter is delicious, flavored with warm spices, and I love to spread it on toast, spoon it on yogurt, or use it in my baking. This apple butter will keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to two weeks or freeze well for three months. I used a variety of apples for my butter, but some of the best apples to use are Golden Delicious, McIntosh, or Jonagold, Granny Smith, Fuji and Honeycrisp.
Buon Appetito!
Deborah Mele
Slow Cooker Apple Butter
Cooking apples in the slow cooker with warm spices is the perfect way to make apple butter.
Ingredients
- 7 Pounds Apples, Peeled, Cored and Chopped
- 1 Cup Granulated Sugar
- 1 Cup Brown Sugar
- 1 Tablespoon Ground Cinnamon
- 1/2 Teaspoon Freshly Grated Nutmeg
- 1/4 Teaspoon Ground Cloves
- 1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
Instructions
- Place the apples in a slow cooker.
- In a bowl, mix together the two sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves, and then pour the mixture over the apples and mix well.
- Cook in the slow cooker on low heat for about 10 to 12 hours, stirring once in a while, until the mixture is thickened and dark brown.
- Uncover, stir in vanilla and continue cooking uncovered on high heat for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours to thicken.
- Use a blender to puree the apple butter until smooth.
- Spoon the mixture into sterile containers, cover and refrigerate for up to two weeks or freeze for up to three months.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 24 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 133Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 4mgCarbohydrates: 34gFiber: 3gSugar: 30gProtein: 0g
