Slow-Cooker Apple Butter

Apples...what if you bought a bushel of them this fall and you snacked on them, and cooked with them, and baked with them, and baked with them, and baked with them and you still have a lot left....what do you do?  You make crock-pot apple butter. 

I fill my slow cooker with peeled, cored and diced apples.  I add some cinnamon and sugar, put on the lid and cook on low for 10 hours.  Take off the lid, turn the heat to high and cook for another 2 hours.  You will have some of the best apple butter/sauce you have ever tasted; without all the stirring and no scorching.   The recipe below is for apple butter, which is sweeter than most applesauces.  Don't like apple butter?  Leave out the cinnamon (the color will be lighter), use less sugar and you have applesauce.  Add as much (or as little) sugar as you like.  Would you rather sweeten with honey or agave? Go ahead! It's your butter. 

 If I plan ahead, I can bottle some of this in my water bath canner, but I have to do it when there are no family members around or a batch never makes it that far.

There's nothing better than homemade applesauce/butter.  Your home-made will have no preservatives, no additives, and you won't have to stir the pot.  If you have organic apples, you won't need to peel them unless you want to. Spread this on toast, on cheese, or into your yogurt.

I've listed a recipe as a guide for you below.  Add to it, adjust it, and make it your own. 

Crock-Pot Apple Butter

You will need a 6 quart crock-pot

5 lbs. peeled, cored, and diced apples (any combination)

2 C. granulated sugar

1 ½ tsp. ground cinnamon

Peel, core and coarsely dice the apples, placing them in the crock of a 6-qt. slow cooker. Add sugar and cinnamon. Cover and cook on low for 10 hours.

Uncover and continue to cook on low heat for another 2 hours or until desired consistency is achieved (or mash slightly by hand or with an immersion blender). Most large chunks of the apple should dissolve and the overall effect will be like soft, lightly grainy butter. (Cook’s note: If you have an automatic slow cooker, you’ll need to reset the timer for 2 more hours on low. The warm setting is not sufficient to finish the apple butter).

Allow the apple butter to cool before placing in airtight containers. Refrigerate or freeze until ready to use. If sealed it will keep for up to 3 months in the freezer. Thaw frozen apple butter in the refrigerator before using.

*You may also bottle this using a water bath. I process for 20 minutes/pint container. Follow the guidelines for water bath processing at your altitude to be safe.

Makes 6 cups.

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