Prize Winning Apple Butter -Easy Slow Cooker Recipe. Goes great with sweet or savory dishes. You choose! Nice for gifts too!
Prize Winning Slow Cooker Apple Butter is a delicious recipe and has been generously shared by one of our Lovefoodies supporters, Cathy Kopp.
Cathy is always cooking delicious Homemade dishes and just loves to cook. Cathy has lots of different canning recipes, such as Pickled Pepper Rings, and Homemade Canned Chili.
Here, Cathy's prize-winning slow cooker Apple Butter is incredibly easy and is certainly popular with her boys!
It's easy to do, let your slow cooker do all the work and at the end, you have delicious Apple butter. Cathy entered her Apple Butter into the Wayne County Fair and won first prize, so many congratulations! It sure is a winner recipe!
For those who have never tried apple butter, you must! How would you eat it? Well, some people use it as a spread, like you would jam, on bread or toast. You can use it to make cakes, such as our applesauce brownie cake. (It uses apple butter instead of fat in the recipe!), and you can also use it to have alongside some delicious roast pork and crackling as a side sauce too!
Making slow cooker apple butter is a great way of preserving apples, using the canning method. Apple Butter is popular around Fall time when there's an abundance of delicious sweet and juicy apples, so make a batch and give away as gifts at Christmas time! It's hard to find a good apple butter in the grocery stores, especially one which has no added preservatives or artificial additives, so homemade is the way to go for a great tasting and nutritious apple butter.
So let's get straight to the recipe and see how we make this prize winning slow cooker apple butter recipe! Please enjoy!
Recipe by Cathy Kopp
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 22 hours
Yield: 5.5 pints
Ingredients
12 pounds Golden Delicious apples - peeled, cored and sliced
½ cup apple cider vinegar
3 cups white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground allspice
Instructions:
1. Place apples and vinegar in a large slow cooker, and place lid on top.
2. Set on High, and cook for 8 hours, then turn to Low, and continue cooking 10 hours more.
3. After 18 hours, stir in white sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice, and cook 4 hours more.
in 22 hours this will be Apple Butter
After 8 hours on high. Now it goes to low for 10 hours.
This is after 8 hours on high and 10 hours on low. Now it's time to add the sugar and spice.
Now to let it cool a bit, blend it, and then put into jars
My Notes:
This is easy, easy, easy! The most difficult part is peeling the apples and then getting them all to fit in the crockpot.
I made it according to the directions above. In the future, I will reduce the amount of white sugar and the amount of cinnamon.
In my case I canned the apple butter. See below for instructions how to do that if you are not sure.
Canning Guide:
1. Fill the hot boiled jars with the hot apple butter. Leave a space of about ¼ inch (0.5 cm) of top of jar. Wipe jar rim removing any food residue. Centre hot sealing disc on clean jar rim. Screw band down. Place jars back in the canner (boiling pot). Ensure that all jars are covered by at least one inch (2.5 cm) of water. Cover canner and bring water to full rolling boil before starting to count processing time. At altitudes up to 1000 ft (305 m), process – boil filled jars – 10 minutes.
2. When processing time is complete, turn stove off, remove canner lid, wait 5 minutes, then remove jars without tilting and place them upright on a protected work surface. Cool upright, undisturbed 24 hours; DO NOT RETIGHTEN screw bands.
3. After cooling check jar seals. Sealed discs curve downward and do not move when pressed. Remove screw bands; wipe and dry bands and jars. Store screw bands separately or replace loosely on jars, as desired. Label and store jars in a cool, dark place. For best quality, use home canned foods within one year.
Note : I boil by jars before and after. Also altitude is important.
This is the altitude chart for guidance, Click HERE to see it.
The ingredients proportions are from Bernardin. The jars come with a little recipe book sometimes and fruit proportion has been taken from there as well as some of the boiling instructions.
NOTE: Please be aware that recipes shared by readers of this page are not endorsed, checked or tested by Lovefoodies. Always follow USDA home canning recommendations.
We'd love to hear from you and what you thought of our post. Did you make any changes or add some other goodies? Let us know in the comments below. Thanks for reading and happy cooking!
Why not try our popular Apple sauce and Walnut Brownie Cake (simply swap the apple sauce for Cathy's apple butter! )
Got lots of apples? Here's a few more of our very popular apple recipes for you to enjoy;
Cathy’s Apple Butter
Prize Winning Apple Butter -Easy Slow Cooker Recipe. Goes great with sweet or savory dishes. You choose! Nice for gifts too!
Ingredients
- 12 pounds Golden Delicious apples - peeled, cored and sliced
- ½ cup apple cider vinegar
- 3 cups white sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
Instructions
- Place apples and vinegar into a large slow cooker, and place lid on top.
- Set on High, and cook for 8 hours, then turn to Low, and continue cooking 10 hours more.
- After 18 hours, stir in white sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice, and cook 4 hours more.
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
-
Ninja Auto-iQ Multi/Slow Cooker with 80-Pre-Programmed Auto-iQ Recipes for Searing, Slow Cooking, Baking and Steaming with 6-Quart Nonstick Pot (CS960) -
Instant Pot DUO Plus 60, 6 Qt 9-in-1 Multi- Use Programmable Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Yogurt Maker, Egg Cooker, Sauté, Steamer, Warmer, and Sterilizer
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
30Serving Size:
5 ½ pintsAmount Per Serving: Calories: 206Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 6mgCarbohydrates: 51gFiber: 5gSugar: 44gProtein: 1g
Su Sholer
Great Post!
R.L.Schafrath
Absolutely loved this recipe! I have a large crockpot but not enough room for all my apples so I put some apples in a pot and simmered on stove for about an hour and placed in crockpot when the apples cooked down a bit. Also used less sugar, one cup brown sugar and one cup cane sugar. The apples I used were Fuji and it turned out fantastic! I did read through the comments and didn’t want mine to burn and waste all my apples so I started Cooking during the day so i could keep a watchful eye on it! Although I am originally from Wooster, I live in Florida now. Thanks for the recipe, will use this one again as my go to recipe!
Traci
Is there a way to adapt this to the instant pot? Mine does have a slow cooker method on it, but I'd rather try the pressure cook way first.
Barb clevenger
I did mine my instant pot, just dumped everything in at once and set. When finished I put it in my kitchenaid mixer and use the wisk attachment to reach the right consistency
Mimi
Hi there, I want to cook mine in the instant pot too. Did you pressure cooked it? If so for how long? Thank you!
Lori Becker
I followed the recipe to the letter but I did cut back on the sugar and it just tasted of vinegar in an overwhelming way. 🙁
Lori Becker
Found this today and will be making soon...can't wait! wondering if keeping it on low it ok my crock pot seems to run hot. Have you ever used this recipient with pumpkin?
Thank you
Lori
Odette
I halved the receipt to fit in my crockpot and used only 1 cup of brown sugar. I kept the cover off in the last 4 hours to reduce to the consistency I like. It my have been a bit more than 4 hours, I didn’t time it at the end. Turned out wonderfully. I’ll be giving as hostess gifts around the holidays. Thanks for posting.
Rhonda
Hello .., your recipe AB Recipe sounds wonderful... I’ve searched Pinterest and not all recipes have the cloves and allspice ... my question is how long will this last in the refrigerator or do you think it can be frozen ... with the vinegar in the recipe I think maybe help to preserve it... thank you ...
Peggy
Hi
Took your advice and used 2 cups white sugar and I teaspoon cinnamon
And it is fantastic, quite dark and I also used an immersion blender
So good my husband said it tastes like apple pie
Thank you so much
Mary
Can this recipe be on the stove top
Trista
Tried this with a mix of jonamac and jonagolds, and it was aaaaaamazing!! I also halved the recipe since my crockpot could only hold a little over 6lbs of apples, but it was perfect (and a good excuse to buy an apple peeler, corer and slicer).
I made another batch with gala, too and while it is tasty, I prefer the jonamac and jonagolds. Thanks for sharing, it's seriously the best stuff I've tasted!
Robin Smith
What I do is shred the apples to make them fit I just love this recipe everyone loved it. Thanks for sharing for sharing.
Nicole
Just made a small batch (1/4 of recipe) of this and I am very pleased with the results! I only used brown sugar and I was pleased with the taste so decided to omit the white sugar. I also added more spices for some extra flavor. Definitely will make again, it's super easy and makes a great Christmas gift!
Wanda
Can I use apple pie spice in stead of all those other spices to make my apple butter
Hate life
Mine burned to a crisp in less than 10 hours. Ruined all of my apples!
David
Sorry, but I’m gonna have to call you a liar.
Chrissy
Mine burnt too. I did everything exactly on time. Mine did not burn all the way. It was just burned around the edges on the second check. It was fine when I had to turn it on low. Then, when it was time to put the sugar in, it was burnt on the edges. May be I did not stir it enough or something or may be my crock pot cooks hotter or something. Some ideas would be nice because I would really like to try it again and get it to work.
Michelle
I gave this apple butter as gifts last year! Loved it! I did tweak it sugar and spice amounts a little. I’m wondering if this same method would work with pears for pear butter?
Heather
Amazing!!! I have tried several recipes over the last 2 years and this one beats them all...by far.
I was looking for more of a caramel texture so I kept reducing it to my liking. The balance of all the ingredients makes it a dreamy, yummy goodness. Thank you so much for sharing your masterpiece with all of us apple butter connoisseurs.
Chelsey
Just randomly looking for a good apple butter recipe since I have two bags of apples, stumbled acrossed yours. Couldn't help but laugh because I'm from Burbank also. What are the chances of finding yours on Pinterest out of all those haha. I come from the shaum family 🙂
Shannon
I have a 6 qt crockpot & I could only fit about 2/3 of my apples. Could I add the rest as it cooks down?
Dorinda
Help. I. Followed the recipe to a T for apple butter but it is not think enough. I’m so upset. I have left the lid off for 3 extra hrs. Is there anything I can add to thicken it. I don’t want to can it unless it’s thicker. It tastes great but to runny:(.
Thank you
Brittany
I just put a batch of this apple butter in the water bath and it turned out great! I used 8 lbs of apples and ended up getting 6 half pint jars in the end. I don't have a slow cooker but I do have a large digital pressure cooker that has a slow cook setting, so I used one of the higher temp settings with the pressure valve open for about 3-4 hours and then set it to the slow cook setting for another 16 hours (I left it overnight and ended up sleeping in longer than I'd planned - but it still turned out fine!). The slightly longer cook time might be why I ended up getting a lower yield? Overall I am very happy with this recipe! It was my first time ever making apple butter and it was very easy and turned out wonderfully 🙂 thanks for sharing Cathy!
Jamie
Just wondering if you’ve ever done this over the course of a few days?
Yvonne
I just want to know for sure....is the 12 lbs already cored and peeled or whole apples?
Sandi
I was wondering the same thing...is it 12 lb of whole apples( before peeling)?
Lovefoodies
Hi Sandi, yes it’s before peeling
Beverly
Per the ingredients, 12 lbs, peeled and cored. I had to go back to find it, but it's there. I have seen recipes that throw everything in, but then you have to pour it through a strainer to get the skins and seeds out.
Jennifer Hall
I followed this recipe exactly. But I didn’t peel 12 lbs of Gala apples, only cored them. After 22 hours of cooking I used the immersion blender til smooth. Tastes wonderful! I netted 8-1/2 pints (luckily I had sterilized extra jars). I rate this recipe 5/5 and it will be my go-to apple butter recipe.
Laurie
IF you do not plan on jarring or canning do you still put the vinegar in? Thanks so much. Can't wait to try this, I LOVE apple butter. Grew up in VA remember going to the HUGE cannery and doing this with my mama, man was it ever hot.
Erin
I have never heard of using apple cider vinegar. Does this have a purpose other than flavor?♥️
oskley drumheller
This is my favorite apple butter guideline recipe. I do variations like adding bourbon, etc. I'm canning 200 jars as wedding favors for my daughter,
Teresa
Apple butter is awesome. I got 14 half pints.
Jackie
I'm going to try making this to give out for Christmas, but I only have a 4 qt crock pot. How would I alter the recipe so that it fits in?
Cathy Kopp
Good luck and let us know how it turns out!
Cathy Kopp
Mine is an 8-quart crock pot. It appears you would just cut everything in half. Good luck and let us know how it turns out!
oskley drumheller
Fill pot. Cut other stuff in half. A little extra vinegar would be fine (I use a cup vice a half cup normally)
Erin
What does the vinegar do? I can't imagine vinegar being a good flavor for an apple butter. What am I missing?♥️
Bev
Excellent recipe, followed it, did not add or change any ingredients..followed directly all the way to canning. My family loved it. I am going to give out pint jars for Christmas gifts. Very easy.
Cathy Kopp
Thank you so much for your feedback. I hope your family loves it as much as we do!
Tammy
Do they have to be golden. Can i use machs or cortlands i have those left over
Cathy Kopp
Hi Tammy. You may use whatever combination of apples you prefer. You may need to adjust the sugars depending on the sweetness or tartness of the apples.
Let us know how it turns out.
Carol
Hi Cathy,
Is there a specific purpose for the apple cider vinegar? Could you use just apple cider instead? Im curious. thanks, Carol
Cathy Kopp
Yes, Carol. The vinegar brings the acid to a safe level for canning and preserving the jars to be shelf stable, similar to using lemon juice when you can tomatoes.
I say try it on a small batch for personal use that will be kept in the refrigerator for no more than a month, It cannot be safely kept in jars on your pantry shelf.
Let us know how it turns out!
Carol
thanks Cathy! Does it matter if the cider vinegar is clear or the "healthy" one? 🙂
Cathy Kopp
The only thing that matters is that it is 5% acidity. That is what stops the bacteria.
Cathy Kopp
Hi Carol. I was intrigued by your question and sent it on to an expert with the USDA food extension board. This was the answer I received:
It costs more and while I use it daily for the health benefits, I don't use it in canning. The raw live aspect of it is killed during the canning process so that point is moot. If you're specifically wanting to use it because it's organic go ahead. That would be the only reason to use it.
Carol
Thx for the research. Good to know
Gabrielle
I just made a batch of this last weekend! I had a bunch of Golden Delicious leftover from canning some apple pie filling, so I didn't really measure how many cups, but they didn't completely fit into the crock pot for about 8 hours - meep! I used the measurements listed except that I was out of ground cloves and allspice (how does that even happen!) so I used cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Turned out beautifully! Rich and deep brown, sweet and spicy. I canned according to the instructions, adding 5 minutes for our altitude and ended up with 12 half pints and 3 pints. So, obvi, I had a lot more apples than I thought. I also used all the scraps to make a Jalapeño Pepper Apple Scrap jelly! Delicious weekend!
Cathy Kopp
I love apple scrap jelly! That is so awesome to hear! Thanks for letting me know 🙂
Heidi
Do you have a recipe for the Jalapeno Pepper Apple Scrap Jelly? I have alot of Jalapenos I just picked to save them from our first frost, and will have lots of Apple peels from making this butter. If you could I would love to have the recipe. Thank you
Cathy Kopp
This is the apple scrap jelly I use: https://www.thespruce.com/apple-scrap-jelly-1327811
Hopefully Gabrielle will share her Jalapeno recipe with us!
Sharon
I made a batch of this apple butter last week. It turned out wonderful an I can see how it won a blue ribbon at the fair. My husband says it is the most delicious apple butter he ever ate and eats some every day. I used golden delicious and macintosh apples.
Cathy Kopp
Thank you for your kind words. It's humbling to know that something I love so much is being made and shared by others. I'm so glad you and your husband are enjoying it!
Anastasia
Do you stir at all during the first 18 hours?
Cathy Kopp
I usually start it in the evening and let it simmer overnight undisturbed. The aroma is so intoxicating in the morning that I usually open the lid just to savor it up close. I do a quick scrape down of the edges and then cover it right back up again. You lose a lot of built up heat every time you lift the lid on a crockpot; so you don't want to do that too often.
Lisa C.
This recipe was awesome! My boys absolutely love it and couldn't stop licking the spoons!! I used Northern Greening and Cortland, 1 C each of white and brown sugars, 2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ginger, 1/2 tsp nutmeg and 1 tsp allspice. It smelled like spiced cider and tastes tart with a little sweetness. Soooo delicious!!! Thank you! (First time I've ever made apple butter. I'm hooked!)
Cathy Kopp
I'm so happy you liked it! 🙂
Lisa
If you had already cooked the apples down, how much do you think you need?
Cathy Kopp
I've done that before. I started with 4 quarts of unsweetened apple sauce that I had canned previously, added spices, and reduced it to about 3 quarts of apple butter.
brinestone
My crock pot was smaller, so I halved the recipe. After four hours on high, it looked great. After eight, it was badly burnt, black and charred on the sides and the burn flavor throughout. I had to throw it away. ? I want to try again, but next time I think I'll start in the morning and keep a close eye on it. Maybe 5 hours on high and 6 on low will be better for my crock pot, then adding sugar and spices.
Cathy Kopp
When you reduce the volume of food in a crockpot, you definitely need to also reduce cooking time. It will take much less time for the heat from the crock to get to the center of 1 qt. than 2 qt. That is absolutely something you will have to watch.
Anastasia
Did you ever try it again? If so, what cooking times did you use? I’m doing a half recipe as well.
Sue
How much reduced sugar? I was thinking 2 cups of white sugar and 2 t cinnamon.
Cathy Kopp
I made it once with 1-1/2 c. of white and 1-1/2 c. of brown sugar and thought it was wonderful. It's all trial and error. Just keep your personal tastes in mind. Experiment with different amounts and keep good notes so you can replicate it when you find a version you love. Let us know how it turns out!
Becky
I will be getting these apples from our own trees so it is hit and miss on how good the apples will be so can't really count on 12 lbs of perfect apples. Do you by any chance know how many cups of Apple's 12 lbs would equal?
Lovefoodies
Hi Becky, this is the reply from Cathy. .. According to my Ball Book of Home Preserving, 3 medium apples equal one pound and yields 3 cups of sliced apples. Based on that, you will need approximately 36 medium apples or 36 cups. Don't forget that you don't need to peel the apples if you are using an immersion blender.
Becky
Thank you
Julie Sims
What? Don't have to peel the apples if using an immersion blender?? That's great! But where do the peelings go when blended? I've made this 3 times, it's awesome, and used an immersion blender always, but never knew about the not peeling
Cathy Kopp
I discovered that after that many hours of cooking the peels basically disintegrate and enhance the full bodied flavor of the apple butter.
Charna Blanton
This is the best recipe ever! Everyone said it was the best they ever ate! Thank you for sharing this recipe! I will only use this one from now on. The only thing I changed was the last 4 hours I took the lid off. Made it thicker! Thank you!
Charna Blanton
I also used Hala, Fugi and Ambrosia apples all together! Worked out beautifully!
Charna Blanton
Gala! Lol
kathy
I don't put clove in my applebutter I use red hots the little candys and all my family like it very much
Karene Westford
How much of the red hots do you add? I make a red hot jelly that is fantastic
Debbie
I absolutely love this recipe! I wouldn't try any other apple butter recipe! I'm always giving it away,and so I'm always making a batch. You can do 12 lbs of apples,or half it. Either way,it always comes out perfect. Thank you so much for sharing!
Cathy
Thank YOU for your compliment!
Yvonne
Sounds good. I was very surprised to see that you won it at the Wayne County Fair- I grew up in Orrville and went to that fair every year. Lol. NOW I HAVE to try this!
Cathy Kopp
I'm a taste panelist at Smucker's. Small world. Sure hope you enjoy the apple butter!
Lori J Ludy
so excited to try your recipe can you let me know what size jars you used
Brittney
Do you put a preservativ in the apple butter? Or do you just seal the jars?
Cathy Kopp
I do not add anything other than what is listed in the recipe. Both sugar and vinegar are considered preservatives. I seal my jars with a boiling water bath according to USDA guidelines for safe canning.
Rachel Cunningham
I made this yesterday and finished it today. I only used 2 cups of white sugar and it was till way too sweet for me. Next time I will start with 1 cup, It also had too much cinnamon as well. Other than those little tweeks I can make, the apple butter turned out beautifully! I love the deep dark color. I used an immersion blender to get all the chunks out and it came out to 9 half pint jars. I am going to do another batch as I like to give most of it away during the holidays. I didnt can the apple butter, but I did boil my jars and poured the apple butter in the jars hot out of the crock pot. They all got a great seal on them.
Cathy Kopp
Please just be aware that if you don't boil the filled jars for the proper amount of time as recommended by the USDA, they need to be stored in the refrigerator. Your product is not shelf stable and could develop botulism.
Regina L Burkett
Ok....I have peeled and sliced Honey Crisp apples in my freezer. How will honey crisp work for Apple Butter and what do you guess is the 'cups' equivalent to 12 pounds of apples? Thank you so much for your help. 🙂 Regina
Cathy Kopp
Hi Regina,
Honey Crisp will be wonderful turned into apple butter, but since they are so sweet you should reduce the sugar. After Step 2 when they have cooked down for 10 hours, taste the sauce. Add 1/2 of each of the sugars and then taste it again after an hour. If it needs it you can add more.
According to Google, one pound of apples makes approximately 3 cups of sliced apples.
jessie
hi Kathy I am making this now and thought i had 12 pounds but have 6 do i use the same measurments or cut it in half
Cathy Kopp
Hi Jessie.
This will be your ingredient list:
6 pounds apples - peeled, cored and sliced
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1.5 cups white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
Everything else remains the same.
Let me know how it turns out.
Cathy 🙂
Helen
Hi could I use granny green apples instead of red ones? Thanks
Cathy Kopp
Absolutely. Taste it a couple hours before completion to see if the sugar or spices need adjusting. Let us know how it turns out.
Patty Urban
Hey Cathy, I received 2 cases of small apples of unknown type, so i made a batch of your butter recipe. I had never made apple butter before (but I have made peach butter). My apples really reduced! I only got 3 pints out of them (so 6 half pints) but I think that was due to the apples. My daughter loved the butter and she is a tough critic as she has worked in upper crust restaurants in Denver. I still have a lot of apples left, so I will be making more! As for the sugar, I started low and added more per taste. Since apple varieties are so different, I couldn't imagine there is a 'one size fits all' for the sweetener. I had fun making this. Thanks for sharing!
Cathy Kopp
Perfect. This is a very forgiving recipe that is easy to make it your own. I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
Dwight
I just made my 2nd batch and canned , everyone loves this apple butter recipe thank you Cathy
Cathy Kopp
You are so welcome. It makes me very happy to know that others are enjoying it. 🙂
Roxie
Hi, I would like to try this recipe this weekend. In your notes, you stated that you would reduce the amount of white sugar. By how much do you estimate that you will do that?
Cathy Kopp
Hi Roxie. Now when I make this recipe, I add 1 cup of white sugar and 1 cup of brown sugar at the 18 hour mark. At the 20 hour mark I take some out to cool and taste. If it needs more sugar I add it at this time.
Becky
Do you think honeycrisp apples will work ? If so should I reduce the sugar ?
Cathy Kopp
Hi Becky. It's all a matter of personal taste. Cut each of the sugars in half and then give it a taste after an hour. If you want it sweeter add some more sugar. If it's too sweet add a little more vinegar.
Enjoy!
Jennifer Weideman
Thank you from Doylestown Ohio!!!! Delicious!!!!Jennifer
Cathy Kopp
Jennifer, we're practically neighbors. I'm in Burbank, Ohio just north of Wooster. You are very welcome!!
Cathy
Julie Sims
Hi Cathy! I made this yesterday/today, and it is absolutely delicious! It is exactly as I remember my dear grandma's tasting ? I did use an immersion blender at 'mile marker 19' lol to reach the desired smooth consistency, as I didn't want apple sauce butter ? Also, mine yielded 5 and 1/2 pints, not 11. I did use 12 lbs of golden delicious apples. I will make a second batch next week so I'll have enough on hand to share. Thank you for the yummy recipe!
Cathy Kopp
You're welcome! 🙂
Rochelle Chantaca
How big of a crockpot did you use?
Cathy Kopp
Mine is 8 quarts.
Kathy Crisp
I have made this twice now and canned...and it is wonderful! I used Golden Delicious apples and reduced granulated sugar to 2 1/2 cup, and all who have tried can't get enough of it!
Cathy Kopp
I'm so glad you enjoy it, Kathy! 🙂
Julie Sims
To all who is making this absolutely delightful-smelling and tasting apple butter, what are your yields? I'm still baffled why I yielded 1/2 the amount stated in the recipe. Any ideas? Thank you
Cathy Kopp
Hi Julie. I went back to my original recipe to see where the discrepancy is. I canned 11 half-pints (almost exactly the same as you). I will ask Mary to revise the way she has it listed in the recipe.
Julie Sims
I feel like such a dork! 11 1/2 pints is how I read it, to mean eleven and a half pints ?not eleven half pints! After putting up five pints and one half pint, I much prefer the half pint amount. It seems better to have a smaller amount in the frig for a shorter amount of time, yaknow? Sometimes I am "thick", one of my many shortcomings. Pint or 1/2 pint, your recipe is a keeper!
Cathy Kopp
You're not a dork. I was reading it as 11 and one half pints, also. I had to go back to my original to see what was going on. Mary has since changed it for us.
I agree with you, I much prefer the half pints, especially since it's just me ... unless, of course, my grandkids get to it. Then it disappears in minutes! 😀
Rebekah
Mine is almost done cooking....I have about an hour to go. After it cools what's the best way to blend it? Mines pretty smooth already but it needs to go in a blender too?
Cathy Kopp
Hi Rebekah, I'll bet it smells good in your house!
I use an immersion blender, but it's not mandatory. The consistency is up to you.
Gina
Hello I am making this recipe this week. We went to an Apple Orchard and got a bushel of Honey Crisp . The guy who runs it said it would be OK to use the honey crisp, that he actually uses a variety of apples but I wanted to also get your opinion as well. Also, when you say 12 lbs of apples, are you referring to 12 lbs of whole apples or 12 lbs of peeled, cored and sliced apples?
Cathy Kopp
Hi Gina, I think it's wonderful that you are using Honey Crisp apples. In my opinion, they are the best all around apple and you sure can't beat the flavor! I start with 12 pounds of whole apples.
Jessica
If you half the recipe would it be less cooking time?
Lovefoodies
Hi Jessica, cook time is the same 🙂
connie
Taste great and was super easy but I only got five pint jars out of it.
Cathy Kopp
You probably reduced yours even more than I do. I'll bet the consistency of is awesome. Enjoy!
Amber Campbell
If we wanted to cook this on the stove instead of a a crockpot, what would the cooking times and temperatures be like
Lovefoodies
Hi Amber, I really have no idea. I say this because this recipe is for slow cooking, and the flavors all come about during the ultra low and long cooking process. I guess you could try on the stove top, but I would imagine it would be 6 - 8 hours on low, and you would need to keep the temperature as low as possible and stir occasionally to make sure the heat from under the pan doesn't scorch the apples directly above. But I'm afraid I can't honestly recommend it, only because we haven't had any feedback from anyone trying it on the stove top.
Sorry if that doesn't help, but I'd rather give you good information which we know works for sure!
Amber Campbell
Thank you, i was just curious because I don't have much counter space to have the crockpot going that long lol. I had to set it up on top of the dryer lol.
Donna Hepper McGee
The ball book has a recipe for the stove top you could maybe get the cook times from there...and still use this recipe...because I did the one out of the ball book and had to alter the spices....I like mine like hers' so just look for the cook times...
Amber Campbell
I just finished this recipe today, tastes amazing. I reduced tell white sugar to 2 cups, but i used a different type of apple. I didn't get quite 11 pint jars, i got 7.5 but the taste is phenomenal.
Lovefoodies
Hi Amber! Thanks so much for your feedback and so happy you enjoyed the recipe! Hopefully you can see why it won a prize!!! Thanks for taking the time to write in and let us know!
Brittany
If I half the recipe should I adjust the cooking time as well?
Lovefoodies
Hi Brittany, the cook time will stay the same no matter what quantity you use. Hope that helps and have a lovely week ahead!
Cathy Kopp
Hi Angel,
My crockpot is a 6 quart and that recipe was made with four 3 pound bags of apples from the grocery store. You need to peel, core, and slice them really thin. Actually, I mounded them and when I put the lid on, it didn't sit quite properly, but they cooked down soon enough for the lid to make the proper seal.
Angel Kirk
What size crockpot is being used? I have what I thought was a large one but I can barely get 6lbs of apples in it.
Lovefoodies
Hi Angel, yes, you do have to cram the apples in to start with. You can use a 6 - 8 Quart slow cooker for these. Obviously an 8 quart will give you more space, but the most common size for a large slow cooker is 6 Quart. You will probably notice from the photos the apples did fill the slow cooker! Hope that helps.
Angel Kirk
I mist have the 6 qt. I divided the recipe in have bc I couldn't see 6 more lbs going in. Lol. But just to be clear, 12 lbs is after they're cored and all correct, not whole weight. I know it's weird but I saw a recipe that was like that once. Thank you so much for your time and help.
Cathy Kopp
Different crockpots have different settings and heat ranges. Try adding lemon juice, apple juice, apple cider vinegar, or even just some water right from the start. Maybe even just use the low setting for the whole cook time.
Have you tried using the Reynolds crockpot liners? I can't guarantee it won't burn, but it will help with any clean up.
Cathy Kopp
So very sorry that happened to you, Liz. I can't imagine what went wrong. I made the recipe again this week and it turned out just fine. Can you walk me through the steps you used?
Liz
I followed the ditections exactly. Maybe my crockpot is too hot. I was hesitant to cook on high for 8 hours, but it turned out ok. Then I turned to low before bed and set my alarm for the 10 hour mark. I stirred it a couple times during the 8 hours and a couple times during the ten hours. I only slept for 5 hours so it burned during that time. I want to try it again, but I will start early in the morning so I can keep an eye on it. But at least my house smells good! Lol
Liz
Not so happy with this recipe. I shouldn't have trusted the long ooking time. Got up at 5:30 am after 10 hours on low and it was burnt tomy crockpot. 🙁 make sure to start this one in the early morning so you can keep an eye on it.
shannon
Do you know how to reduce it to make just 1 jar?
lovefoodies
Hi Shannon, I would have a guess that if this recipe makes roughly 11 pints (that's 11 jars), you would need to divide the ingredients by 11 to get what you need to make 1 jar. Or easier, would be to halve the recipe, make 5 jars and give some for gifts 🙂 Hope this helps.
Nicole
Love this recipe but how do you water seal the jars? Thank you
lovefoodies
Hi Nicole, let me give you a link to a recipe for Jam, there, from STEP 2 onwards, it tells you step by step what to do, (obviously replace the jam with apple butter!) the principle is the same for both recipes. I hope this helps. https://lovefoodies.com/how-to-make-jam.html#.UjhNy8bI2So
Donna N.
How much would you reduce the amount of sugar and cinnamon to and why? To sweet or bitter? Thanks,,, love your blog, ,,!
lovefoodies
Hi Donna,
It's all down to personal taste. If you don't like things too sweet or strong tasting of cinnamon then you can reduce the amount, for example knock 1/3 off the sugar. You can always have a taste half way through and see if it is to your taste and add more then if needed. Hope this helps. Thanks!
lovefoodies
Hi Denise, yes, I would advise sealing them if you are not planning on using them within a couple of weeks.
Denise Thornton
After making this many jars do you water seal them?