Stovetop Apple Butter

Name: Stovetop Apple Butter
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 3 h
Total time: 3 h 15 min
Yield: 3 cups
Ingredients: 4 pounds apples; ¼ cup pure maple syrup; 1 ½ tablespoons fresh lemon juice; 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon; ½ teaspoon grated or ground nutmeg; ¼ teaspoon ground cloves; ¼ teaspoon kosher salt; ½ cup water

User Reviews

4.9

33 reviews

Excellent

Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
3 hrs
Total Time
3 hrs 15 mins
Servings
3 cups
Calories
72 kcal
Course
Condiments
Cuisine
American

Stovetop Apple Butter

Lauren Clark

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Stovetop apple butter is everything that's right with autumn. Richly flavored with fall spices. Spread it on sandwiches, use it as a side dish or incorporate into baking dishes.

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Ingredients

Servings

4 pounds apples (See Note 1 for varietal suggestions)
¼ cup pure maple syrup (See Note 2)
1 ½ tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon grated or ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
½ cup water

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Instructions

Do not peel the apples. Cut out the core and cut the apples into 1- to 1 ½-inch chunks. Transfer to a bowl.
Add the maple syrup, lemon juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt to the apples. Stir to thoroughly coat the apples.
Pour the water into the bottom of a large saucepan. Add the apples to the pot.
Bring the liquid to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover the saucepan and cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples are very soft. This will take about 2 hours. The apples should be soft enough to smash with the back of a fork.
Remove the saucepan from the heat. Use an immersion blender to puree the apple mixture until very smooth. (IMPORTANT! Make sure that the immersion blender head is completely submerged in the apple mixture before turning it on. Otherwise, the hot mixture will splatter. You don’t want to be in the line of fire!) Alternatively, use a regular blender. Please be cautious when blending hot mixtures in a regular blender. Allow it to cool slightly, and blend in batches if necessary.
Continue to cook the apple puree over medium-low heat, with the lid of the saucepan ajar. The lid stops the apple butter from splattering over your stovetop. However, it should be ajar to allow the steam to escape so the apple butter thickens.
Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the apple butter is thickened and deep golden brown.
Cool, then serve or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Notes

Note 1: I used Fuji apples because they have a fantastic flavor for applesauce or apple butter. Sweet, but not too sweet, and the texture is on the softer side. Another favorite is a combination of Gala and Yellow Delicious apples. Other good options are Cortland, Braeburn and McIntosh apples.
If you like a hint of tartness, add a Granny Smith apple or two to balance out the sweeter apples.
Note 2: Please use real maple syrup, not a corn syrup-based syrup. The taste difference is real!
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I provide nutritional information for my recipes as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using the LoseIt! calculator. While I attempt to provide information that is as accurate as possible, you should calculate the nutritional information independently before relying on it.