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Apple Butter

By Alison Roman

Apple Butter
Jim Wilson/The New York Times
Total Time
3 to 5 hours, depending on method
Rating
5(943)
Comments
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A great answer to that eternal question — “What do I do with all these apples?” — apple butter is a sweetened, concentrated, lightly spiced spread that’s smoother than jam and thicker than applesauce and fantastic on buttered toast, thinned with vinegar as a sauce for pork chops, or used to top breakfast treats like pancakes, waffles or biscuits. The apples here are intentionally left unpeeled and uncored to take advantage of the extra flavor in the peels and pectin-rich cores. (A pass through a food mill or sieve after cooking will pull them out.) As for the ideal apple butter apple — well, there is none. Use nearly any variety: This recipe is only improved by mixing and matching. Note, too, that this can be made on the stovetop or in the oven. The oven method may take longer, but it can be worthwhile if only to avoid the inevitable splattering of the stovetop method.

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Ingredients

Yield:About 4 cups
  • 4pounds apples (about 10 to 12 medium), washed, unpeeled, uncored, cut into 1-inch chunks
  • ½cup apple cider vinegar
  • 3allspice berries (optional)
  • 2cinnamon sticks (optional)
  • 12-inch piece of ginger, peeled and sliced (optional)
  • 1star anise pod (optional)
  • 1¼cups granulated sugar
  • 1cup light brown sugar
  • Small pinch kosher salt
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

320 calories; 0 grams fat; 0 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 0 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 83 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams dietary fiber; 73 grams sugars; 1 gram protein; 21 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Combine apples, vinegar, allspice berries (if using), cinnamon sticks (if using), ginger (if using), star anise pod (if using) and 4 cups water in a large, heavy bottomed pot over high heat. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples are completely softened and the liquid has reduced by half, 30 to 40 minutes. (Some pieces of apple might float at first; they will sink and become submerged as they soften.) Remove from heat and let cool slightly.

  2. Step 2

    Leaving behind allspice berries, cinnamon sticks and star anise pod, pass the apples through a food mill. (Alternatively, working in batches, ladle apples into a strainer or colander, and using a ladle, wooden spoon or spatula, press apples to pass pulp through, leaving behind seeds and skin.)

  3. Step 3

    To finish on the stovetop: Place apple pulp in the same large, heavy-bottomed pot, add granulated sugar and light brown sugar and stir to dissolve. Cook on medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture is thick, glossy and a deep golden brown (somewhere between honey and molasses), 2 to 2½ hours. (Around the 1½-hour mark, things will start to bubble rather violently. Stirring constantly will help, but expect, and be careful of, a few splatters.) To test the thickness, spoon a bit onto a plate: The mixture should set almost immediately with no spreading or wateriness. If it’s not there yet, cook another 8 to 10 minutes and test again. When the desired consistency is reached, season with kosher salt.

  4. Step 4

    To finish in the oven: Heat oven to 300 degrees. Place apple pulp in a 9-inch by 13-inch (3-quart) baking dish, add granulated sugar and light brown sugar and stir to dissolve. Place in oven and let cook, stirring every 30 minutes or so, until mixture is thick, glossy and a deep, golden brown color (somewhere between honey and molasses), 3 to 3½ hours. To test the thickness, spoon a bit onto a plate: The mixture should set almost immediately with no spreading or wateriness. If it’s not there yet, cook another 20 to 30 minutes and test again. When the desired consistency is reached, season with kosher salt.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
943 user ratings
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Comments

Carroll

Pushing this through a sieve is onerous, messy and inefficient. If you don’t have a food mill, peel and core the apples, put the peels and cores in a square of cheese cloth and cook with the apples. The recipe itself is delicious!!!

Judy

I made a similar recipe in the crock pot entirely. Just stirred periodically during a long day simmering.

Maggie

This recipe was wonderful. However, I think it called for far too much sugar. I only used the brown sugar and negated the granulated sugar. It was the perfect sweetness for me.

KateD

My elderly friend remembers making apple butter on the farm in upstate NY. Boiling and stirring g all day long. They stored it in a big crock in a root cellar with a dish towel on top. They would just scoop out a it to eat. Sometimes they had to remove mold.

Teresa

I’ve never made apple butter before, but I have apples falling off my tree in my garden, and I have a few bags of frozen apples that are already cored and peeled from last year. So I was wondering if I could just use the cored and peeled apples from last year. I saw one commenter say something about putting the peels in a bag to boil with the apples? Is that necessary? If so, I’m thinking I could just get some of this summer’s apples and peel them and then mostly use the frozen apples from last year.

Jo-Ann

@SeaGal So you followed exactly none of this recipe as written but decided to comment anyway?

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