My kids have sandwiches for school lunch almost every day because they can reliably be expected to actually eat them, unlike most of the other things I've tried. I make them as healthy as possible with whole-food ingredients, but I get tripped up on jam. Low-quality jam is basically fruit-flavored corn syrup while good-quality jam is still not very good, and homemade jam is generally a pain in the ass to make and can also be an expensive process. So I've been experimenting with fruit butters instead.
Except that fruit butters also have an awful lot of added sugar! Which is silly, really, because fruit butter is just concentrated fruit and thus, quite sweet on its own. Pick up a jar of apple butter some time and check out how much sugar is in there, keeping in mind that four grams is one teaspoon. (That means that two tablespoons of apple butter equals just under two tablespoons of sugar -- not much actual fruit to speak of.) Commercial jam is no different.
After finding recipe after recipe after recipe containing large amounts of added sugar, I set out to make an apple butter with no added refined sweeteners. Instead, I used apple cider to intensify the flavor. Usually I would argue that juice is little better than soda, having lost almost all of its nutritional value in processing, but in this case I consider it a good compromise to use unfiltered, organic apple cider.
This recipe does take a while to make, but it's very easy, good for a chilly weekend afternoon. The pay-off for stirring every ten minutes for over three hours is a rich, smooth, delicious butter, redolent with the scent of autumn. Sweet-tart heirloom apples (such as Gravenstein, Jonathan, or Crispin) are best for this sort of recipe. If you stop after the pureeing step, you've got a perfectly fine applesauce.
Apple Cider Butter
10 medium apples, chopped
2 c. unfiltered apple cider
1 T. cinnamon
Combine the apples, cider, and cinnamon in a large pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, for about 30 minutes. Process the apples into sauce using a blender or food processor. Return to the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, for about 3 hours. Stir every 10-15 minutes to prevent sticking.
When the sauce has reduced by two-thirds and is very thick, you can spoon it into jars and refrigerate,
or freeze with an inch of headspace. Makes about 5 cups. Enjoy!
4 comments:
Wow, you really brought back the memories. I was the weird kid at school, I had peanut butter sandwhiches with homemade apple butter on them. I loved them then as I do now. I made a big batch of apple butter this year. I always use the crock pot and just let it cook away for an entire day. Thanks for sharing with the Hearth and Soul hop.
I have this dilemma, too...and I usually get lazy and give in to sugary jams. But I do enjoy making apple butter in the fall...although the kiddos don't like it as well as I do. Ugh. Thanks so much for sharing it w/ the hearth and soul hop this week :D
When I was a kid my grandmother canned everything imaginable and apple butter was her favorite. Your recipe looks great! Thanks for linking to the Hearth and Soul hop this week.
My roommate used to make apple butter but I never had the patience for it. I was always just content with apple sauce. But this does look wonderful and I know I do like apple butter. Thanks for sharing!
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