Shakin & Bakin Foodie Blog

Last week I picked up 3 bushels of Gala apples at a really fabulous price. I decided to do some home canning and made some big batches of apple sauce, apple pie filling and of course....apple butter. When I make apple butter and home can it...I use the recipe from the Ball Blue Book - Guide to Preserving.

This apple butter recipe is for home canning and will make 6 half-pint or 3 pint jars.

Home Canning - Apple Butter Recipe

4 pounds of apples (12-18 apples)
2 cups of water
4 cups granulated sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. cloves

Prep: Wash apples under cold running water, drain. Core and peel apples. Cut apples into quarters. (I use an apple peeler & corer that I got from Pampered Chef and it's fabulous! I had 18 apples done within 7 minutes).

Cook: Combine the apples and water together in a large saucepan (I use a medium-sized stock pot). Cook apples at a simmer until soft. Puree mixture using an electric food processor or food mill (I use my Ninja Blender). Measure 2 quarts of apple pulp; return apple pulp to the pan. Stir in the granulated sugar and spices, stirring until sugar dissolves (over medium heat). Cook at a gentle boil until the apple mixture is thick enough to mound on a spoon, stirring frequently. Remove from heat.

Fill: Ladle hot apple butter into a hot jar, leaving a 1/4" headspace and remove air bubbles. Wipe the rim of the jar clean and then add the seal and band, adjusting the band until it's finger-tip tight. Place jar on the rack elevated over simmering water in your water bath canner. Repeat until all jars are filled.

Process: Lower the rack into the simmering water. The water needs to cover the jars completely by at least 1". Adjust the heat to medium-high, cover the canner and bring water to a rolling boil. Process half-pint or pint jars for 10 minutes. Turn off heat and let the jars sit in the hot water for an additional 5 minutes. Remove jars from canner and sit them on a towel on your counter-top to cool. After 12 hours, check seals to make sure jars sealed properly.