Apple butter

Ay naku! Is it already time to start preparing for the High Holidays?

I suppose so, as Rosh Hashanah is next week, and Yom Kippur the week after.

This means that it's time to break out the apples, honey, and other sweet things to celebrate a sweet new year!

Last year I got so many apples from my CSA box each week that I couldn't give them away anymore. Happily, this abundanceof apples coincided with my acquisition of a food processor, and my experiments with apple butter were born. 

I learned very quickly that removing the seeds was important to do before pureeing the apples, rather than relying on an inefficient sieve to sort them out. If I had a food mill, I'd use that instead of the food processor. My apple butter turned out a little grainy because of the tiny, hard pieces of seed, but otherwise it was particularly delicious on a piece of challah toast. 

At its essence, apple butter is reduced applesauce, smooth and rich on the tongue, rife with dusky caramel sweetness. If you really, really had to, you could take some store-bought applesauce, put it over a flame, stir in some spices, and wait for it to reduce to a thick, yet spreadable mass, but where's the fun in that?

Apple butter

4 lbs apples, quartered (and seeded if you're using a food processor, not if you're using a food mill or sieve)
1 cup apple cider vinegar
2 cups water (you can use orange juice for some of this. If you do, cut some of the sugar, as it will be quite sweet.)

2 lbs sugar (a little more than 2 cups granulated. Powdered sugar works just as well. The added cornstarch also helps the mixture gel together, but isn't necessary. Apples have some pectin in their cores, which is usually enough to keep the texture thick.)
1 lemon, zested and juiced (1/4 cup lemon juice, 1 teaspoon zest)
1 T cinnamon and/or 2 cinnamon sticks
1 t allspice
1 t cardamom
1 t nutmeg
1/2 t cloves

1. In a large, heavy saucepan, bring apples, sugar, vinegar, and water to a boil.
2. Add cinnamon sticks and simmer for 20-30 minutes, until apples are soft. Remove cinnamon sticks, if using.
3. If using a food mill or sieve: Push apple mixture, including liquid, through mill or sieve. If using a food processor: Puree apple mixture, taking care not to overfill the workbowl.
4. Return puree to saucepan, stir in lemon and spices, and simmer on medium to medium-low heat until puree is caramel-colored and thickly coats the back of a spoon. It should spread smoothly onto a piece of toast, and definitely should not be runny. This can take around an hour. It's ready for canning once it's reached the right consistency.
Makes around a quart of apple butter, depending on how much it cooks down.

In this case, patience is deliciously rewarding. Step 4 can be done overnight in a slow cooker set on low. Best of all, it lasts if you keep it in the refrigerator. I'm still going through some of last year's batch.

Let me know how you like your apple butter in the comments.
Tagged rosh hashanah slow cooker spread
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