How to make your own homemade Apple Butter in a small batch. This recipe has no added sugar, but tons of flavor.
Making a small batch of apple butter is a tasty way to make use of some extra apples that you may happen to have in your house. This recipe only needs 4 apples, so it doesn’t make too much and there is no canning needed to enjoy it.
I prefer to make this with tart apples like Granny Smiths, but you can really make this with any variety of apple or even a combination of apples that you may have on hand.
To Make Homemade Apple Butter You Will Need:
- apples
- apple cider
- cinnamon
- nutmeg
- mace
- allspice
- food processor
- baking pan
- sauce pan
- knife
To begin, you’ll heat your oven to 350 degrees.
Peel, core, and cut your apples into wedges and place them in a baking dish. Cover the pan tightly with some aluminum foil and bake for 30-45 minutes, or until the apples are cooked and soft. Let them cool a few minutes.
You’ll place the cooked apples in your food processor along with the cinnamon, allspice, mace, and apple cider. Pulse them until the apples are smooth.
What is Mace?
Mace is an aromatic spice that comes from the dried outer shell of the nutmeg seed. It has a very warm flavor and can be used in all sorts of desserts or savory dishes. At times, mace can be difficult to find in grocery stores. If you can’t find it in your area, you may simply omit it or substitute it with nutmeg.
A note about the apple cider: When you purchase your apple cider, check the ingredients and make sure it has no added sugar. If you have a difficult time finding good apple cider, apple juice can be used in a pinch.
Next, you’ll transfer everything to a saucepan and simmer it over low heat to cook it down. Stir the mixture occasionally as it cooks. This process reduces the liquid in the apple butter. The length of time will vary between about 30-90 minutes. The total time will depend upon how much moisture was in your apples and according to how thick you would like your apple butter to be.
Place the finished apple butter in a jar or airtight container and store in your refrigerator.
This apple butter is wonderful used in any number of ways. Give it a try on some Pancakes or Waffles!
How long does apple butter last?
Because of the acidity in apples, apple butter that is stored in an airtight container in your refrigerator can last up to 9 months or even as long as a year.
But I highly doubt this apple butter will manage to stick around for more than a couple of days.
Did you Make this Recipe? I’d love for you to give me a 5 star rating in the recipe card below. If you share it on Instagram, please tag me! You can also post it to my Facebook Page.
Homemade Small Batch Apple Butter
Ingredients
- 4 apples, Granny Smith preferred, but you can use any kind you have on hand.
- 1 c apple cider, see note
- ¾ teaspoon cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon allspice
- 1/16 teaspoon a pinch mace
Instructions
- To begin, you’ll heat your oven to 350 degrees.
- Peel, core, and cut your apples into wedges and place them in a baking dish.
- Cover the pan tightly with some aluminum foil and bake for 30-45 minutes, or until the apples are cooked and soft. Let them cool a few minutes.
- Place the cooked apples in your food processor along with the spices and apple cider.
- Pulse them until the apples are smooth.
- Transfer everything to a saucepan and simmer it over low heat to cook it down. Stir the mixture occasionally as it cooks. This process reduces the liquid in the apple butter. The length of time will vary between about 30-90 minutes. The total time will depend upon how much moisture was in your apples and according to how thick you would like your apple butter to be.
- Place the finished apple butter in a jar or airtight container and store in your refrigerator.
Notes
Nutrition
If nutritional values are provided for this recipe, they are an estimate and will vary depending on the brands of ingredients you use. The values do not include optional ingredients or when ingredients are added to taste or for serving. If nutritional values are very important to you, I suggest using your favorite nutritional calculating tool with the brands you use.
Unit Conversions:
Unit Conversion for measurements (if displayed), going from US to Metric is an auto-generated conversion. If you are using the metric measurements, please double-check to confirm that these are accurate with your favorite preferred conversion tool.
I will try this looks great