Easy DIY gift: Homemade Apple Butter

Homemade apple butter is a super fun gift for the holidays. I am not a canner-type person, don’t worry if you aren’t either, it is crazy easy and doesn’t require any of that fancy canning tool type stuff.

You will need about 3 bags of apples, 2 red and 1 green.  I used gala for the red.

Apple Butter:

2 to 1 mix of gala (red apples) and green apples.

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

3 cups white sugar

1 cup brown sugar

3 teaspoons cinnamon

pinch of ground cloves

You will also need a Crockpot, metal funnel, and pint jars

Peel, core, and chop up apples, filling up your Crockpot to the tippy top.  Add the vinegar and bake on HIGH for 8 hours, then bake on LOW for 10 hours.  Add everything else, then bake on LOW for 4 more hours.  You may want to set the timer on your Crockpot, mine shut off somewhere in the middle of the 10 hours, I guess it decided it was done.  No rest for the weary, you need all 22 hours outta this pot!  If it helps, my sister created a schedule that I follow…

In by 10pm, turn down at 6am, add stuff at 4 pm, take out at 8pm.

This is the consistency you are looking for.  It helped me to take the lid off for the last 2 hours to let the apple butter thicken.  I also used a wisk during that last 2 hours to break up any large pieces.

Depending on the size of your Crockpot, you will get about 12 pint jars from this recipe.  To prepare the jars, add water to your largest pot and boil the bands, lids and jars.  This will sanatize everything.  I could only fit 6 at a time, so each time I took one out to can, I added another.

Using tongs, pull a jar from the boiling water and place in a pot or bowl, this prevents messy overflow.

It should take about 1 ladle scoop to fill your jar.  Then add the lid and band real quick like.  It will all be hot, so use a towel.

Then place in a non-drafty area of your kitchen and cover with a towel.

In about an hour you should hear the tops start popping, meaning you have officially canned something!

If they don’t pop, you should put in the fridge and use quickly because there are no preservatives.

If they do pop, which they all should, you are all set to make pretty packaging and give away!

Kelli and I packaged these together, aren’t they sweet!!!???

We used a small dessert plate to trace a circle on the fabric.  Then we cut out and tied onto the jar.  The cutie labels are from How About Orange.  Well, the whole wrapping idea is from her, we had to copy, it was too cute.

Now if you are feeling super creative, you can add biscuit mix, I will show you that tomorrow.

YUM!!!!

UPDATED: here are the biscuits!

I am adding this to the Saturday Night Special :)