Apple Butter

By Susan52

Ingredients

• 7 pounds of good cooking apples (a tart green apple is preferable)
• 1 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar
• 3 cups water
• Sugar (about 5 cups, see cooking instructions)
• Salt
• 3 teaspoons cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 3/4 teaspoon allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 lemon, juice and zest

Preparation

Step 1

EQUIPMENT:

Wide 8-quart pan (Stainless steel or copper with stainless steel lining)

A food mill or a chinois sieve

canning jars 6-8 pint

COOKING:

Cut the apples into quarters, do not peel or core them (much of the pectin is in the cores and flavor in the peels), remove any damaged parts by cutting them away.

Place the quartered apple pieces into large non-reactive pot.

Add the vinegar and water, cover, bring to a boil.

Reduce heat to simmer, cook until apples are soft, about 20 minutes.

Remove from heat.

Ladle apple mixture into a food mill, turning the handle to release the pulp into a large bowl (You may also use a chinois sieve. If using a chinois, use a pestle to force pulp from the chinois into a large bowl below).

Measure resulting puree (My 7 pounds of apples yielded 16 cups of puree) and pour it back into the non-reactive pan..

Add ⅓ cup of sugar for each cup of apple pulp.

Stir to dissolve sugar.

Add a dash of salt, the cinnamon, ground cloves, allspice, nutmeg, lemon zest and juice. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.

On medium-low heat, cook the spiced puree uncovered, stirring constantly to prevent burning.

Scrape the bottom of the pot while you stir to make sure the mixture is not sticking. The stirring also encourages evaporation as you want this mixture to reduce and thicken.

Cook until thick and smooth (about 2 hours - I cooked mine a bit longer for a thicker consistency).

Use a canning pot (with a rack on the bottom) filled about half way with water and bring the water to a full rolling boil.*

Dunk your jars in the boiling water, filling them completely. Remove them from the boiling water and drain them top down on a clean, dry towel. (Or you can rinse out the jars, dry them, and place them, without lids, in a 200°F oven for 10 minutes.)

Pour the cooked apple butter into hot, sterilized jars, leaving ½ inch of head space.

Wipe the top edges of the jars with a clean cloth that has been dampened with hot water.

Before applying the lids, sterilize the lids by placing them in a bowl and pouring boiling water over them. Place the lids and the rings on the jars, tightening the rings. Then, back the ring off ¼ of a turn.

Place the sealed jars into the canning pot with boiling water, making sure the water covers the top of the jars completely.

Place a lid on the canning pot and allow to boil for 15 minutes.

Remove the jars from the boiling water and place on a dry towel to cool completely.

You should hear the lids sealing (they will pop as they seal). After the jars cool, you can tell you have a good seal if the lids DO NOT pop if you press on the center of the lid.

If you have a jar that has not sealed, you can refrigerate it, or you can remove the lid, clean the rim, replace the lid and hot water bath it again. Further processing will not harm the apple butter.