Apple Butter Recipe

This Slow Cooker Apple Butter simmers fresh apples with sugar and warm spices for a thick, rich, and flavorful homemade spread. Enjoy it on biscuits, toast, or cornbread for a taste of fall!

Course Breakfast, Condiment, Dessert, Side Dish

Cuisine American, Southern

Keyword apple-butter-recipes

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 8

Total Time 8 10

Servings cups

Calories 472kcal

Author Melissa Sperka

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp allspice or 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
7-8 lb apples peeled, cored and thinly sliced [approx. 12 cups]
1 small lemon juiced
2 tsp pure vanilla

Instructions

In a small mixing bowl stir together the brown sugar, granulated sugar, ginger allspice, salt and nutmeg.
In the bottom of a 6 quart slow cooker, arrange the thinly sliced apples.
Drizzle the lemon juice over the top of the apples.
Sprinkle the sugar and spice mixture over the apples and stir to coat on all sides.
Cover and cook on low heat for 8 hours.
After 8 hours, uncover and give it a good stir. Puree in the slow cooker until smooth using an immersion blender or ladle into a stand blender to puree in batches. Add the vanilla extract, mix well.
Store apple butter in a mason jar or airtight container chilled in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Notes

How to Can Apple Butter: Using proper canning technique you can store apple butter for up to 1 year.

Prepare boiling water canner. Heat jars in simmering water until ready to use, do not boil. Remove jars to fill using tongs. (They're hot!)
Prepare lids in warm soapy water and set aside with bands.
Cook Cinnamon Spice Apple Butter per recipe.
Ladle hot apple butter into hot jars, leaving ½ inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe rim with a lint free kitchen towel or paper towel.
Center lid on jar. Apply band turning just until it's fingertip tight.
Place jar in boiling water canner. Repeat until all jars are filled.
Process jars 15 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Turn off heat, remove the lid and let jars stand for 5 minutes.
Carefully remove jars and allow them to cool for 12-24 hours.
Check lids for seal, they should not flex when center is pressed.

Best Apples to Make Apple Butter in a Crockpot- Invariably, when I make apple butter someone will ask what are the best apples to use. Most agree that the softer apples will cook down the quickest. My advice is to use the apples you love, and a mix of varieties will yield a more complex flavor. Some varieties we love are Braeburn, Cortland, Crispin (Mutsu), McIntosh, Fuji, Golden Delicious. Gala, Honeycrisp and Rome. My answer is always the same, use whatever apples you enjoy most.
Sugar - I recommend using a combination of sugar for depth of flavor. That said, you can use only white sugar or only brown sugar, if that's your preference.
Spices - You could use apple pie spice or create your own spice blend.
Allspice - You can replace allspice with 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves.
Processing Apple Butter - You can puree the apple butter in batches in a stand blender if you don't have an immersion blender or food processor. Rule of thumb is to process until it's fairly smooth or until it reaches a spreadable consistency.

Nutrition