Slow Cooker Apple Butter (24 Hour)

An incredibly rich and old-fashioned flavored slow cooker apple butter recipe that’s hands off.  The long, slow cooking process renders a wonderfully rich and deep flavor with notes of caramelized apple.  It’s absolutely delicious!  And if you want to store it long term, this recipe includes instructions for canning your apple butter!

My husband, Todd, and I have several annual harvesting traditions.  For years now, starting when we were dating, we’ve gone wild blackberry picking each Summer.  Now that we have acreage with tons of blackberries of our own, we don’t have to venture very far.  Our record high was 19 gallon freezer bags full!  We enjoyed healthy smoothies all year long.

Another harvest tradition is late summer/early autumn apple picking.  Previously we used to pick apples from a large orchard owned by a friend.  Horses used to graze that orchard and they always made apple picking especially fun.  That was 15 years ago, my goodness time flies!

Sadly that friend passed away and the orchard was sold.  But we’ve since planted several apple trees of our own and have continued to harvesting tradition in our own orchard.  We now also press our own apple cider and bottle it for long-term storage (check out our how-to article).   I also love to make my own raw apple cider vinegar, fruit leather, applesauce and of course this deeelicious slow cooker apple butter which has become a family favorite.

Be sure to give yourself the full 24 hours to make this slow cooker apple butter.  Start it during a time of day when you know you’ll be home about 4 hours before it’s done.  The last few hours of cooking time you’ll want to give it an occasional stir.  About 4 hours before it’s done you’ll also need to remove the lid to allow your apple butter to thicken.  Depending on the juice content of your apples, you may need to let it cook a bit longer until it has reached your desired consistency.

The amount of sugar you use will depend on the sweetness of the apples.  Whether the apples you’re using are sweet or tart, adjust the sugar accordingly.  And remember, you can always start with less and add more toward the end.

This no-hassle crock pot apple butter recipe leaves the peels on so you have very minimal prep work (and can enjoy the extra health benefits of the peel).

How to Use Apple Butter

Apple butter is not only delicious, it’s also more versatile than you may initially think.  Here are some ideas on how to use apple butter for both sweet and savory applications:

• Spread on Toast, Bagels, Scones and Muffins
• Mix with Yogurt
• Stir into Oatmeal
• Toping for Pancakes and Waffles
• Use as a Filling for Layer Cakes, Muffins, Crepes, Cookies, Breads, Pies, etc.
• Use in Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
• Pair with Cheese on Cheese Board
• Marinade or Glaze or added to BBQ Sauce
• Dip for Pretzels and Apple Slices
• Mix into Smoothies
• Ice Cream Topping
• Cocktail/Mocktail Mixer
• Gift or Party Favor

You can also use this slow cooker apple butter to make our delicious Apple Butter Cinnamon Rolls!

Why 24 Hour Slow Cooker Apple Butter?

The deep brown caramelized color, thick consistency, and depth of flavor is only achievable through a low heat and lengthy cooking process.  And boy, is this crock pot apple butter worth the wait!

You’re going to love what 24 hours of slow cooking does to this apple butter.  Just when you think it can’t taste any better, you keep letting it cook until it’s rendered down to a rich dark brown color with a depth of caramelized flavor that will make you swoon!

Slow Cooker Apple Butter Recipe

Let’s get started!

Measure out the apples, apple cider, and apple cider vinegar.

Wash, quarter, and core the apples.  Place them in a 7-quart slow cooker (if you don’t own one that large, simply half the recipe).  Don’t worry about them turning brown – the apple butter is going to be brown anyway!

Add the brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon, and cloves.

Pour in the apple cider and apple cider vinegar.  Give it a quick stir.

Cook the apple butter on LOW.

After about 20 hours the apple butter will look wonderfully dark like this:

Use a blender stick to puree the apple butter until it’s smooth.  I use and like the Cuisinart Smart Stick which is also perfect for pureeing hot soups instead of having to transfer them to a blender.  Alternatively you can carefully pour the apple butter into a blender (you’ll need to do it in batches) and puree until smooth.

At this point, let the apple butter continue to cook – with the lid open – to further thicken it.  Let it cook for 4 more hours, stirring occasionally.  Depending on how juicy your apples are, you may need to cook it a bit longer until the desired consistency is reached.  Taste it and add more brown sugar if needed.

How to Can Apple Butter

If you’d like to store your apple butter long-term, it’s super easy to can it!

While the apple butter is still hot, ladle it into hot sterile jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace.  Clean the rims with a wet cloth or paper towel, screw on the lids and process the jars in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes.  This water bath canning set comes with everything you need.

Adjustments for canning at high altitudes:

• At 1,001 to 6,000 feet (305 to 1,829 meters) above sea level: increase processing time by 5 minutes.
• Above 6,000 feet (1,829 meters) above sea level: increase processing time by 10 minutes.

Store for up to a year in a cool place.  This recipe yields about 5 pints.

Alternatively, freeze or keep in the fridge in air-tight jars for at least a month.  This apple butter also makes wonderful gifts!

Enjoy!

For more delicious apple goodies be sure to try our:

• Baked Apple Cider Donuts
• German Apple Cake
• Apple Butter Cinnamon Rolls (use this slow cooker apple butter recipe to make these rolls!)
• Apple Streusel Muffins
• Apple Cinnamon Quinoa Cereal
• Curried Apple & Butternut Squash Soup
• Apfelschorle (German Apple Spritzer)

Originally published on The Daring Gourmet September 21, 2013