Slow Cooker Apple Butter

31 Comments

thick and delicious apple butter
thick and delicious apple butter

One look at this beautiful, thick apple butter and you know it has to taste awesome. It’s cooked low and slow in the crock pot but the time it takes is totally worth the wait. Make it before you go to bed and have sweet apple dreams. Wake up, and see them come true.

so thick and creamy
so thick and creamy

Before you hit the hay, wash, peel, core and chop up your apples. Peeling your apples is optional. If you want a smooth butter then peel your apples. If you don’t mind a little texture, then leave your peels on (I decided to remove most of  the peels). Add the apples along with a few other spices and a little bit of water to your slow cooker. Set it on low and then go to sleep. When you wake up, give the apples a good stir. You can either puree them with an immersion blender or put the apple mixture in your blender and then put the puree back in your crock pot to continue cooking. At this point, leave the lid ajar and cook until the apple butter reaches your desired consistency. I wanted mine super thick so I let it cook for like another six hours. The longer you cook it, the thicker it will be.

Apple butter is high in natural sugar so if you want don’t want to add sugar, then use sweet apples. The thing about sugar is that helps thicken your apple butter. I used about 5 tablespoons of coconut sugar so my apple butter was satisfyingly sweet. You don’t have to add sugar to yours, but just be aware that the consistency may not be as thick as you’d like. It’ll still be awesome.

Making homemade apple butter isn’t an exact science. Apple butter is just applesauce that you keep cooking down to a concentrated sweet spreadable spread. Put it on anything and everything. Make it, taste it, love it. Then spread the apple love and share with a friend. Wondering what else you can do with apple butter? Make this apple butter pumpkin pie.

paleo apple butter
paleo apple butter

Apple Butter

Apple Butter

4.67 from 6 reviews
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Ingredients
 

  • 5 1/2 pounds of apples ½ peck, washed, peeled, and chopped
  • ¼ cup water
  • 1 teaspoon Cinnamon Ground
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly grated Nutmeg
  • pinch of ground Cloves
  • 5 tablespoons Coconut Sugar optional

Instructions
 

  • Add all of your ingredients to your slow cooker and mix well.
  • Put the lid on and cook on low overnight – 9 to 12 hours.
  • When you wake up, give the apples a good stir. Puree them with an immersion blender or put everything into a blender and then put the puree back into the crock pot.
  • Taste and adjust the spices/sugar.
  • Cook on low with the lid slightly ajar for a few more hours or until the apple butter is as thick as you’d like it to be (I did another 5-6 hours). Stir frequently.
  • Store in an air-tight jar in the refrigerator.

Notes

For a sugar-free apple butter, omit coconut sugar and choose sweet apples.
Did you make this recipe?Tag @myheartbeets on Instagram and hashtag it #myheartbeets!

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Hi, I’m Ashley. Thanks for being here! I truly believe that food brings us closer together. Gather around a table with good food and good people, and you’ll have the ingredients you need to create some happy memories. My hope is that you find recipes here that you can’t wait to share with family and friends.

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Comments

  1. Sondra Singer says

    3 stars
    First I used small Winesap apples that we picked ourselves. It took a lot of little apples, so we didn’t peel this time. I did use coconut sugar, but probably more like 4 Tbsp. because Winesaps are more tart than say, Galas.
    Where this recipe could have gone way wrong was with the water. I don’t know if Winesaps just don’t have as much moisture as others, but we needed WAY more water than 1/4 Cup. More like almost 2 Cups. We kept adding. And, it’s a good thing we didn’t go to bed and leave it, not only because of the moisture issue, but because it took way less time. Just 6 hours in total cooking. We then cooled it off, and the next morning I put it in the food processor, which blended almost all the peels in nicely. We also added vanilla to this.
    I recognize that different apples can change a recipe, but I had another before that wasn’t for peeled apples that I used these same apples before, and we didn’t have these issues. I just didn’t have it in me to peel. It took me hours of prep with my husband’s help as it was to fill the large crock pot with those tiny cored apples. Anyway, the basic idea of this recipe is fine, but don’t leave it overnight, or add a lot more water for small apples like these.

  2. Marie says

    Just what I’m looking for. Your apple butter looks delicious–I like it dark and thick. I just recently purchased an Instant Pot (way late to the trend–as usual) and wondered if you’ve made this using the IP as a slow cooker? If so, did these instructions work for that? (I came to this from your apple butter recipe using the pressure cooker feature.)

    Thanks

  3. Kay says

    5 stars
    I was longing for the Apple Butter my grandmother use to make and decided to try this recipe. I used organic apples and did not peep them. I also did not want any added sugar and hoped the apples would be sweet enough. I blended the cooked mixture in my Vitamix so the skins were not even noticeable. When I did the taste test before adding it back to the crockpot it was all I could do not to serve myself a small bowl to eat while it was warm. Thanks for this recipe.

  4. Shasa says

    HI. What is the alternative way to make it without the slow cooker or a crock pot? How long does it take to cook in a usual pressure cooker, like the one we use in India?

  5. Sandi says

    This is my first time making apple butter and the apples are in the crock pot right now as I type. I am very excited to see how it turns out since this is my first time doing this. My very first canning experience was pear preserves and they turned out wonderful. I love apple butter. After I put them in the jar what do I do next? Do they have to be stored in the refrigerator? I am planning on make more for the ladies at church when we come together for our monthly meeting.

  6. Melissa says

    5 stars
    I wanted to try canning these so I can give them as gifts – we’re driving from the West Coast to Chicago for Christmas so I won’t be able to refrigerate them! Do you have any directions/suggestions for doing so? Thank you!

  7. Melissa says

    5 stars
    I wanted try canning these so I can give them as gifts – we’re driving from the West Coast to Chicago for Christmas so I won’t be able to refrigerate them! Do you have any directions/suggestions for doing so? Thank you!

  8. Jamie Fullman says

    Oh my goodness this is yummy! I used various types of apples from our fruit bowl that had gone beyond their nice crunchy state, and the “butter” came out amazing! Thank you so much for this recipe! I will be making it again and again.

  9. Shelley Alexander says

    Ashley, Your recipe looks and sounds yummy! I love fruit butters. I have a pumpkin coconut butter recipe on my site that is also one of my favorite recipes! I will be making your recipe this week since I just got a bunch of organic apples from the farmer’s market. Thanks!

  10. Deborah Davis says

    I grew up loving the taste, texture and color of apple butter. I haven’t had it since my mom served it to me many years ago as a child. Now I will try to make my own. What a wonderfully simple recipe!

  11. Abbie says

    Wow! This is – well, *was* amazing! I made it this morning and it’s almost gone! After tasting, I added a sprinkle of salt and a pinch of cardamom, just for fun. Otherwise, I followed your directions. It’s heavenly! Thanks so much!

    • My Heart Beets says

      Abbie, I’m so glad you liked it! I’ll have to try your additions the next time I make it – a little salt and cardamom sound wonderful. If you have enough left over try out the apple butter pie that I posted today 🙂

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