Perfect on toast, apple butter is the perfect combination of fall flavors. Not to mention how good your house will smell while making it.
I think autumn is one of my most favorite times of the year. I am not a hot weather girl, and as much as I love the snow, I think I love the season as it transitions from the heat of the summer to the cold of winter. Cool, crisp mornings with vibrant leaves changing their colors make fall one of my favorite times of the year. Those days when you go outside and it just smells like fall are pretty amazing as well.
Fall foods are also some of my favorites. Pumpkin bread. Apple pie. Pear crisp. There are just some foods I never really seem to eat except during those fall months. I occasionally think about making pumpkin cookies during other times of the year, but I pretty much never make them unless it's autumn. Some foods are just right for the fall.
A few years ago I bought a couple of boxes of apples from a local farm, planning to make lots of applesauce out of them and can it into jars for the months ahead. I made it through a box and a half, and then realized I had more applesauce than what I would need for the next little bit. So I looked at recipes that would use the remainder of the apples and I came across this one. I adjusted it slightly, but it's pretty true to the original one I found in the Ball canning blue book.
Apple butter is really pretty simple. It's apple flavor with the other tastes of fall spices come together to perfection. I love it on a piece of warm toast. I think it is a little confusing to call it apple butter, being as there is no butter in it. It's basically an applesauce that has been cooked down and concentrated to a thick, delicious consistency.
The past couple of years we've been bottling apple butter in the fall to give away for Christmas gifts for our neighbors. We usually make it in 4 ounce jars so that it goes a little further as far as gifts. We put some Christmas fabric over the top, put a bow on it and deliver it as it. I think it has worked out pretty well.
4 pounds apples (about 16 medium apples)
4 cups apple
2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cloves
To prepare pulp: wash apples. Core, peel, and quarter apples. Add apples to large sauce pot. Add 2 cups water. Simmer until apples are soft. Puree using a food mill or food processor, making sure not to liquefy. Measure 2 cups of apple pulp to use for the apple butter.
To make butter: Combine apple pulp, sugar. and spices in a large sauce pot. Cook slowly until thick enough to round up on the spoon. As mixture thickens, stir frequently to prevent sticking. It will take a while for the apple butter to thicken. Ladle into jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space. Process for 10 minutes in boiling water caner.
Note: if butter becomes too thick, add a little water or apple juice until at the desired consistency.
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