One of the great things about where we live is the close proximity to hot off the farm food. We recently bought our weight in a variety of apples and weren’t eating them quickly enough. The first thing I decided to do was make crock pot apple butter. I don’t utilize this glorious kitchen gadget often enough and this was a nice easy way to use up some apples. I didn’t need to stand and stir, watch for bottom of the pan burning, etc. All I needed to do was some prep work.
The recipe below is more than enough for my family of two adults, a toddler and a baby who is old enough to eat solids (aka not solely breastmilk or formula fed). It fit nicely in my crock pot to start and cooked down with plenty of room to mash it up without a mess.
You will need:
*Approx. 2.5-3 apples (look below for chart)
*1/2 cup white sugar (or use what you prefer)
*1/2 cup brown sugar (or use what you prefer)
*1 tablespoon vanilla extract (I used homemade)
*1 teaspoon cinnamon
*1/4 teaspoon clove
*1/4 teaspoon salt
Optional:
*1-2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or spiced alcohol
*1/4 teaspoon ginger or replace all spices with pumpkin pie spice
*honey or maple syrup to taste or to replace sugar
I found this handy guide via Google if you don’t have a scale to weigh apples:
Peel, core and chop all apples and add to crock pot.
Add all other ingredients including optional ingredients (if using store bought vanilla extract I would wait to add this until you mash the apples).
Mix well then set lid on to cook on low for approximately 10 hours. I tend to just leave it for the day then switch the heat setting before bed.
Stir occasionally.
Turn onto warm overnight. In the morning or after 8 hours or so check on contents to see if the mixture has cooked down well and browned. Turn off, remove lid and let cool for 30-60 minutes before continuing. You can add imitation vanilla extract, etc at this time. You can alternatively cook on low a few extra hours instead but I like it all to stew together as long as possible.
Mash contents up using a whisk or potato masher. Alternatively, purée in blender in small batches or use an immersion blender. I have also seen people blend down the apple mixture raw before cooking. Some even include the peel to create less waste and for any additional benefits the peel may have (still core and chop apples).
Now you can add your mixture to jars, Tupperware, etc. It freezes well! Use on toast, in cookie cups, as a cake filling, etc!
Enjoy!
The Heathen Homesteader 