My friend Holli gave me this great apple butter recipe a couple of years ago and I just love it! Very simple and since I usually make it overnight we wake up to a wonderful smelling house in the morning.
All Day Apple Butter
5 1/2 lbs of apples
2 cups sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp salt
Peel, core and finely chop apples. (I shredded the quarters in my Salad Shooter) Place the apples in a slow cooker (crock pot). In a medium bowl, mix the sugar, cinnamon, cloves and salt. Pour the mixture over the apples and mix well. Cover and cook on high for 1 hour.
Reduce heat to low and cook 9-11 hours (now you know why I do it overnight) stirring occasionally , until the mixture is thickened and dark brown.
Uncover and continue cooking on low for 1 hour. Stir with a whisk if desired, to increase smoothness. Or you can use an immersion blender if you want to make it extra smooth after its finished cooking. Personally I prefer it a little chunky.
Spoon the mixture into sterile containers, cover and refrigerate or freeze. This makes about a quart total.
I have found that if you put this into hot canning jars and with hot lids they will seal and then there isn’t a need to freeze or refrigerate. If you want to be absolutely certain you could run them through a pressure canner like you would applesuace.
