This sweet spiced apple butter captures the orchard fruits of late summer in a rich, velvety spread worthy of the most well-stocked hobbit pantry! Use it as the star ingredient in our Spiced Apple Butter Loaf for a cozy hobbit dessert, or browse the full Hobbit Pantry series for more Shire pantry favourites.
This recipe is featured in our A Hobbit's Pantry e-cookbook
Stock your pantry like a true hobbit with this recipe and more seasonal preserves, pickles, and condiments inspired by the cozy kitchens of the Shire.
A Hobbit's Pantry
Through the long, hot summer months, the hobbits of the Shire are busy tending their gardens, harvesting their crops, and preserving fresh seasonal produce for their well-stocked pantries. In a hobbit’s pantry you will find summer’s bounty captured in rows of pretty jars filled with berry preserves and fruit jams, bundles of dried herbs, crocks of tangy pickles and savoury chutneys. A hobbit’s pantry embodies their deep love of growing things and the wisdom of preserving the abundant crops of summer for the leaner days ahead.
More Hobbit Pantry recipes
- Garlic Scape Butter
- Rhubarb Shallot Relish
- Spiced Rhubarb Jam
- Raspberry Lavender Jelly
- Wild Mushroom Seasoning Salt
- Pickled Mustard Seeds
Apple Butter
From the late summer orchards of the Shire, the hobbits gather bushels of sweet and juicy apples. Spiced and slowly cooked, apple butter is the perfect way to capture the sweet essence of this late summer fruit. Cooked until tender and then puréed until smooth, this apple butter is then gently reduced into a thick, concentrated spread. The natural sweetness of the apples is enhanced with a pinch of spices for a taste of the fall season ahead. Tuck away a jar of this spiced apple butter to enjoy long into the fall months!
Ways to Use Apple Butter
- Intensely flavoured apple butter can be used similarly to applesauce in baking such as cakes, muffins or loaves, like our spiced apple butter loaf
- Spread on a slice of toasted bread or a flaky scone along with a cup of tea
- Top a stack of pancakes, like our Buttermilk Rye Pancakes, or swirl into oatmeal or yogurt, like our Creamy Barley Porridge with Apples, for a delicious fall flavoured breakfast
- For the ultimate sweet and savoury treat, add a thick layer of apple butter to your grilled cheese sandwich or our Cheddar, Green Onion, and Yogurt Scones
- Serve instead of applesauce alongside roast pork or pork chops
Ingredients
Apples: I like to use a blend of different apples – although you can use any type that you prefer. For the recipe pictured here, I used a blend of Granny Smith and Honeycrisp apples.
Sugar: This recipe uses both white and brown sugar, but you could use one or the other if you prefer. Unlike jam, there is very little sugar in this apple butter – most of the sweetness will come from the natural sugars in the apples as they reduce.
Spices: Fragrant cinnamon and allspice add a hint of fall flavours to this richly flavoured apple butter.
How to Make Spiced Apple Butter
Prep the apples
Peel, core, and chop the apples. You should end up with about 2 ½ pounds of diced apples. Transfer the apples to a large, heavy bottomed pot. Add both sugars along with the water, apple cider vinegar, cinnamon, and allspice. Stir to combine and then cover and place over high heat.
Bring the apples to a boil and cook until softened. Remove from the heat. Transfer the cooked apples to a blender along with any liquid in the pan. Blend until completely smooth. Return the apple purée to the pot and place over very low heat.
Cook the apple butter
Cover the pot with a lid slightly ajar and cook the apple butter slowly over very low heat until it has reduced to a thick paste and darkened in colour. This should take between 3 and 4 hours. You will need to keep a close eye on the apple butter, stirring frequently, to prevent it from scorching on the bottom. This is particularly important near the end when the apple butter is thickened.
Serve the Spiced Apple Butter
The apple butter is done when it has reduced down to about 2 cups in volume and is dark in colour and very thick. Allow to cool before transferring to a jar for storage. The apple butter can be stored in the fridge for two to three weeks or for up to a year in the freezer. Enjoy!
Spiced Apple Butter
Ingredients
- 3 ½ lbs apples *see note
- ½ cup water
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground allspice
Instructions
- Peel, core, and chop the apples. There should be about 2 ½ pounds of peeled and diced apples. Transfer the apples to a large, heavy bottomed pot. Add both sugars along with the water, apple cider vinegar, cinnamon, allspice. Stir to combine and then cover and place over high heat.
- Bring the apples to a boil and cook until softened. Remove from the heat. Transfer the cooked apples to a blender along with any liquid in the pan. Blend until completely smooth. Return the apple purée to the pot and place over very low heat.
- Cover the pot with a lid slightly ajar and cook the apple butter slowly, over very low heat, until it has reduced to a thick paste and is darkened in colour. This should take between 3 and 4 hours. Keep a close eye on the apple butter, stirring frequently, to prevent it from scorching on the bottom. This is particularly important near the end when the apple butter has thickened.
- The apple butter is done when it has reduced to about 2 cups in volume, is dark in colour and is very thick. Allow to cool before transferring to a jar for storage. The apple butter can be stored in the fridge for two to three weeks or for up to a year in the freezer. Enjoy!
