So it’s October once again. The weather is changing quicker than I prefer and soon it will be winter. Ok not really. Thank goodness! I love fall. The leaves slowly transitioning from green to bright shades of red, yellow and orange. The fire tipped trees are one of my favorite parts of fall. With the cold weather, I crave fall flavors. I can’t get enough apples, squash and of course pumpkins. Fall produce pairs perfectly with some of my favorite spices- cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.
A couple weeks ago, I made Everyday Maven’s 2-minute PB&J mug cake but with almond butter and topped it with some apple butter my mom made me. I forgot how good it was and wanted to make a batch myself. This batch is huge! I definitely recommend trying to can a portion so it doesn’t go back in your fridge. This is also makes for an amazing holiday gift. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t love homemade food. Crockpot apple butter couldn’t be easier. You pretty much put everything into your crockpot, let it cook then puree it at the end!
If you are going to can you will need the following:
14 4oz jars with lids (or jar size of your choice)
Clean lids (if your jars are dirty or missing)
Canner or deep stockpot
Jar Lifter
Ingredients
- 5 pounds sweet apples, cored and diced (such as mcintosh, gala, braeburn)
- 2 tbls ground cinnamon
- 1 1/2 tsp cloves
- 1 tsp ground all spice
- 1 tbls lemon juice
Directions
- Pour all ingredients into you crockpot.
- Cook on low for 6 hours.
- After 6 hours, use a potato masher to break down the apples a little more.
- Then cook for another 3-4 hours.
- Once apples are done cooking, use an immersion blender to mix until smooth. You can also do this into batches in your blender.
- Store in airtight container in the fridge or you can canned for later use.
- Place hot apple butter into clean and sterilized canning jars. (I used 14 4oz jars)
- Fill each to within 1/4-inch from top of jar.
- Wipe jars and threads with a clean, damp cloth.
- Cover with 2-piece lids, only finger tighten. (Air will not be able to escape if lids are tightened too much, may want to back off 1/4 turn)
- Place into boiling water in canner or very deep stockpot; water must cover jars at least 1/2-inch.
- Process for 10 minutes.
- Remove jars from boiling water and place upright on a towel to cool completely.
- After jars cool, check seals by pressing centers of lids with finger. If lid springs back, lid is not sealed and refrigeration is necessary.
- Let stand undisturbed at room temperature for 24 hours.
- Store unopened in a cool, dry, dark place up to 1 year.
- Note: Times can change due to altitude. You can find out more about canning here.
Enjoy!
x vanessa
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So glad you loved the mug cake and made it your own with this apple butter! I bet your house smells A-mazing when you are making this 🙂
It definitely made the whole house smell like the holidays!
looks great. love that there’s no sugar. it’s immersion blender not emulsion blender though. I love mine. great for pureeing soups too.
I am so embarrassed! I looked at that a couple times and knew it looked wrong but my spell check wasn’t helping me out. I love mine too! It is one of my favorite kitchen tools.
This looks amazing! I just wanted to check before I made this – Do I need to peel the apples? The ingredients just say to core and dice. Thanks in advance!
Thanks and nope you just core and dice. The peel melt away into the mixture when you puree it!
Thank you so much for this recipe! I LOVE that there is no sugar added to this (especially since my 3 year old loved it so much she snuck into the fridge and ate a whole jar!!!!) Very yummy indeed. She also said the smell reminded her of winter so she calls it winter apple butter 😉 and thank you for the canning instructions, I am just starting to do canning so that was very helpful
Ahh I love it! I am so happy you all liked it!
Hi
I am adding sugar to my apple butter. Will this effected the canning process? Thanks!
Hi can I use apple cider vinager in place of the lemon juice?
I normally do a 1:1 sub with those ingredients, but I am just not sure how it would taste in this. I would either do 1/2 tablespoon ACV or just omit the acid all together.
Hi!
Can you cook on high for 2-3 hours instead of high?
Oops I mean intead of low!
The low temperature really helps the apples break down, but if you are in a time crunch I think you could cook it on low for 5 hours.
I’m so glad I found this! I had a ton of apples and I didn’t know what to do with them. I’ve never canned anything before either. I didn’t realize how simple water bath canning was. I successfully made and canned apple butter on the first try! Thanks so much!
Awesome!! Canning can seem intimidating but it is pretty easy!!
Just wondering how long it generally lasts in the fridge after it has been open? Does the lemon juice work help to preserve it? I’m guessing it should be consumed within 2-3 weeks but really unsure.
The lemon juice does help to preserve it to a point. It is best if used within 2 weeks of opening, but I bet it would be fine at 3 weeks. I like to can it in small 4oz cans, which I can use in a single setting!
What size crockpot did you use? I am thinking about tripling the batch to use as gifts. I have two crockpots but one is bigger.
It was a 7-quart crockpot!