Recipe: Apple Butter

I can’t believe we haven’t posted a recipe since mid-November! That’s so unlike us! Well, I’m breaking the streak. In the spirit of all things fall/winter/holiday, here’s a lovely apple butter recipe. Hubby heralds it as the best he’s ever tasted, & I would concur. So did my sister, mom, & dad, who also got a jar… I had to share the love since this recipe makes 6 half-pint jars, or 3 pint jars. I processed them too, so we had a little stockpile in our pantry. If you want more info on how to can, you can check out how I did that for my grape jam, here. And if you want a LOT more info, pick up this book.

Spice Apple Butter
makes 6 half-pints, or 3 pints

Ingredients
6 lbs apples, cored & peeled, cut into 1” chunks – use soft apples like gala, red delicious, gravenstein, etc.
2 cups apple cider or water or apple juice
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp ground aniseed (optional)

Directions
- Dump it all in a slow cooker, stir it around, & put it on a low temperature setting with the lid propped up on chopsticks or set the lid askew to allow the liquid to evaporate. Let it roll in the slow cooker for 9-12 hours, stirring occasionally. The mixture will become very thick & dark.