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Sharing my favorite homemade slow cooker maple apple butter recipe today, since you guys have been asking for it all month long.
As a lot of you have noticed, I’ve been using a ton of apple butter this September, see this honey, apple, cheddar, and bacon panini, this brussels sprout mushroom pizza, this honeycrisp apple old fashioned, and this pastry wrapped baked brie with maple roasted apples. To my surprise, many of you are actually unfamiliar with apple butter. If that happens to be you, apple butter is basically just apple sauce, but thicker and spiced with warm autumn spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. It’s sweet, smooth, and possibly one of the most delicious spreads to keep in the pantry and put on toast throughout the fall season.
I’ll usually buy apple butter from the store, but on my fall bucket list this year I had written down “make homemade apple butter”. I was so excited that I actually checked the item off my list within the second week of September! I mean, this is amazing because my fall bucket list is huge, and I’ll often make a bucket list and never check anything off!
Anyway, I guess my point is that I was very excited to finally make some homemade apple butter. I’m also extremely excited, not only in how delicious it turned out, but how easy was to make!
If you have been following along on the blog for a year or more, than you know, come fall, I love to break out my slow cooker. Something about slow cooking a recipe all day long, just screams out to me during the fall months.
This apple butter is the perfect recipe to make on a crisp Sunday morning. Then maybe go out for a mid-day hike or bike ride and when you come back in the house will smell all cozy and delicious. then just spend an hour or two curled up on the couch and taking in the smell of apples cooking with cider, maple syrup, cinnamon, and nutmeg…nothing short of amazing. Honestly, I would make this apple butter recipe simply for the smell it gives off. It’s like your favorite fall candles, but so much better.
Of course, unlike a candle, you get to eat this at the end of cooking, which is obviously much more ideal than just blowing something out, you know?
OKAY, so here’s how this recipe works. Chop up your apples (I love using Honeycrisp) and add them to your slow cooker along with, apple cider, maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Cover and cook on low and slow all day long (or at least that’s how I prefer to do it). Then remove the sauce, puree in a blender and place back in the slow cooker for another hour or so. This will help thicken the sauce into more of a “butter”.
There’s almost zero work involved in the recipe and the end result is just so delicious. So far, I’ve used this apple butter in four recipes and it has taken them from good to incredible. AND I love that the only added sugar I used in the recipe is maple syrup, no brown sugar or coarse sugar needed. Meaning, this totally is totally acceptable to call healthy. Cool. Cool.
I have truly been using this apple butter almost daily. It is delicious in so many recipes (try it with pork chops!) or just spread it over a piece of toasted bread.
Plus, it’s the perfect way to use up all the fall apples you went and picked over the weekend…or that I hope you picked!
And you guys! Speaking of the weekend! I have so many fun details to share about the Half Baked Harvest Cookbook retreat. Would you like a full post on the retreat? I don’t have too many photos, but I have so much to say! Maybe I will share the details in my favorite’s post this Sunday!
Just to quickly recap though, the retreat went so amazingly well and was so much fun! Fortunately, the dinner on Saturday night went great. I worked with Crate and Barrel on the tables, and Kroger on the dinner. The tables turned out so cute that I might just need to recreate them and snap some better photos. I always LOVE the tablescapes I’m able to create with Crate and Barrel product. The actual meal thankfully turned out great. Thank you to Kroger for all my delicious produce…oh, and the ice cream social we did together was so delish.
Sunday morning was brunch with my friends at Land O’Lakes. It could not have been more delicious. All of their special butters take recipes to another level…their pumpkin spice butter is just too good.
I will go into more detail on Sunday, so stay tuned for that!
In the meantime, how about we all make some apple butter and then this apple cheddar Panini and this cocktail?!
Homemade Slow Cooker Maple Apple Butter
Servings: 6 cups
Calories Per Serving: 232 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 4 pounds Honeycrisp apples, cored and diced
- 1 1/4 cups apple cider
- 1/2 cup real maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon or 1-2 cinnamon sticks
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 pinch ground cloves (about 1/4 teaspoon)
- 1 pinch sea salt or kosher salt
Instructions
Slow Cooker
- 1. In the bowl of your slow cooker, combine the apples, apple cider, maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5 hours, stirring halfway through cooking.2. Remove the cinnamon stick and then transfer the apples to a blender and puree until smooth. Return to the crockpot and cook, uncovered on high for 1-2 hours or until slightly thickened. Taste and adjust sweetness level to your liking by adding more maple. Cool and store in glass jars in the fridge for up to 1 month.
Instant Pot
- 1. In the bowl of your instant pot, combine the apples, apple cider, maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt. Cover and cook on high pressure for 20 minutes. Release the steam.2. Remove the cinnamon stick and then transfer the apples to a blender and puree until smooth. Return to the instant pot and cook, uncovered on sauté for 15-20 minutes, or until slightly thickened. Taste and adjust sweetness level to your liking by adding more maple. Cool and store in glass jars in the fridge for up to 1 month.
Stove-Top
- 1. Combine the apples, apple cider, maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, salt and 1 cup water in a large, heavy bottomed pot over high heat. Bring to a boil, then 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, adding water if needed to keep the apples in liquid. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.2. Remove the cinnamon stick and then transfer the apples to a blender and puree until smooth. Return to the pot and cook, uncovered over medium heat for 15-20 minutes, or until slightly thickened. Taste and adjust sweetness level to your liking by adding more maple. Cool and store in glass jars in the fridge for up to 1 month.
Notes
Nutritional values are based on one cup
Yes, lets! No boring Tuesdays around here!
Lastly, if you make this Homemade Slow Cooker Maple Apple Butter, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
This post was originally published on September 26, 2017
Could you make this in an instant pot?
Hi Emily! Yes, you can cook on high pressure for 20 minutes, then simmer the butter on saute for 15-20 minutes, until it has thickened. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan ???
What if mine is not thickening? It has been back in the slow cooker for two hours
Hey Alex, did you turn the heat to high and leave the top off the slow cooker? If so, try switching to a saucepan and simmer the apple butter over medium heat on the stove for 20-30 minutes That will thicken the butter up for you. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan ???
I made this recipe this past weekend and overall it came out pretty good– tastes great, but mine did not reduce to the consistency in your photos! It’s much runnier… maybe I didn’t use enough apples? Still happy with the outcome though! I plan to give them out as favors at our (Canadian) Thanksgiving next weekend 🙂 Thank you for the recipe!
Ooo love that! I hope it turns out amazing for Thanksgiving, Erin! Thank you! xTieghan
Great! This is a interesting read. It’s a very useful and informative information for me. Thanks for sharing this useful information.
Thank you so much! I am so glad you loved this! xTieghan
I made this today to go with the prosciutto wrapped chicken with cider pan sauce recipe I will be making tomorrow 🙂 any remaining apple butter will be going in paninis. Thanks for sharing all your recipes!! I come to your website for ideas daily and I always leave inspired!
Awh that is so amazing to hear! Thank you so much for trying this out, Sara!! xTieghan
This is absolutely delicious and super easy to make!!
Thanks Holly! X Kelly
Just made this so I can make your spiced apple pecan cake tomorrow. So delicious! I added a couple tablespoons of butter at the end of the puree process for some extra richness and it was divine!
Oh man what a perfect addition! Thanks for sharing Kaylin!
is there any alternative for the slow cooker or the instant pot? unfortunately i own neither of them
Can this be canned in a water bath?
Hi Kimberly! Yes it could, but I’d suggest she follow the instructions as outlined in the Ball Guide to Canning for fruit preserves. Let us know if you have any other questions!
Made this today and it’s delicous! My mom made apple butter and canned it every Fall with my Grandma’s apples so I was pretty skeptical if this would stand up to her recipe – because of course she doesn’t have a recipe so I had to look for one! – and it certainly does. Absolutely delicious. Cooked in my crockpot for 7 hours on high and blended it in batches. Every HBH recipe I’ve tried has been a keeper! ❤️
Awh that is so great to hear! So glad this turned out so well for you Sarah! xTieghan
This might sound silly, but can a Dutch oven replace a slow cooker? And would it be the same times to cook?
Hi Miranda! A dutch oven will be great! I would cook, covered over low heat for 2-3 hours, puree, then simple until the apple butter thickens to your liking. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
Love it!
Thank you! xTieghan
Everyone should make this in the fall! So easy & so delicious!
So glad you loved this Kristin! xTieghan
I do t know what the equivalent apple is in the UK to a honey crisp apple. Is it a tart apple like a Granny Smith or more like a Braeburn or Jazz apple. Or is it a cooking apple like a tart Bramley apple. The wrong sweetness of the apple would change the end result. Thanks.
Hi Nina! It is not tart, I would say it is more sweet with a little tartness. I hope you love this recipe! xTieghan
Could I make this in my instant pot?
Hi Caroline! Sure, you can make in the instant pot. I would combine all ingredients and cook for 12-15 minutes on high pressure, release the steam, then saute for 10 minutes to thicken the apple butter. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan