Slow Cooker Apple Butter

There's just something about apple butter that feels cozy and nostalgic. This slow cooker apple butter is made in the slow cooker, so it's mostly hands-off, and it makes your home smell incredible all day long.

 

Why You'll Love This Recipe

• Easy, set-it-and-forget-it: The slow cooker does all the work while you go about your day.
• Perfectly spiced: Cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves give it that classic apple butter flavor.
• Customizable texture: Leave it chunky or blend it smooth with an immersion blender.
• Different cook time options: Cook on low or high, making it a faster or slower recipe based on your schedule.
• Great for gifts: Jar it up and share with friends, neighbors, or teachers.
• Versatile: Spread on biscuits, toast, pancakes, or even swirl into oatmeal or yogurt. You can even use it in other recipes, like this apple butter pie or these apple butter ribs on the grill.

Ingredients (with Notes)

• Apples (5 pounds, before peeling, cored, and diced): Any variety works, but mixing sweet and tart apples gives the best flavor.
• Granulated sugar (½ cup): Adds a touch of sweetness without overpowering.
• Light brown sugar (1 cup, lightly packed): Brings warmth and depth.
• Ground cinnamon (1 tablespoon): The star spice for apple butter.
• Salt (⅛ teaspoon): Enhances flavor.
• Nutmeg (½ teaspoon): Adds a cozy, earthy note.
• Ground cloves (¼ teaspoon): A little goes a long way for that signature apple butter taste.

Instructions

• Peel, core and dice your apples in to small pieces. Or, now, I love using my peeler, slicer, and corer to speed up the process and make things easy.

• In a mixing bowl, stir together both sugars, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, and cloves.

• Place diced apples in your slow cooker.
• Pour the mixture over the apples and stir to coat.

Different Texture Options

You can choose from different textures and cooking times, and I’ve shared the different methods with you so you can decide which will be best for you.

For Smooth Apple Butter

When the apples are tender, you can use an immersion blender or regular blender to create a smooth apple butter, as shown below.

For More Texture

Skip the blenders, and whisk the apple butter often as it cooks. This helps break the apples down but still leaves texture in the apple butter.

Different Cook Times

• Cover and cook on low for 10-12 hours, whisking occasionally.
• Cover and cook on high for 4-5 hours.

With either timing option, removing the lid at the end of the cook times, and allowing it to cook for about another 30 minutes to a 1 hour, is recommended to help some of the liquid evaporate. This is also based on your preference of your prefered texture/flavor.

Go ahead, give it a taste test at this point, and see what you think!

Examples of Cook Times and Textures

In the image below, I cooked this apple butter for 4 hours, then left the lid off for 1 hour. Then, used my immersion blender to create a smooth apple butter. This made 5 half-pint (8-ounce) jars.

In the next photo, the apple butter was cooked for 11 hours, then an additional hour with the lid off, and whisked often during that cook time. Cooking it a longer time, created a concentrated (less apple butter), textured (chunkier) apple butter, since I did not use a blender.

Tips & Notes

• Cooking time can vary depending on the apple variety. Softer apples (like Gala or Fuji) may need less time, while firmer ones (like Granny Smith) take longer.
• The longer you cook it, the thicker and more concentrated the flavor becomes. So, a shorter cook time may result in thinner apple butter, and longer cook time, thicker.
• If you want to blend the apple butter, and don't have an immersion blender, carefully transfer the mixture in batches to a regular blender (but let it cool slightly first).
• Serving warm or cold. You can enjoy the apple butter right away, warm. Or, my family prefers to allow it to cool, and then be chilled to serve on warm biscuits.

FAQs

Storage & Freezing

• Fridge: Store cooled apple butter in jars or airtight containers for up to 2 weeks.
• Freezer: Freeze in freezer-safe containers for up to 6 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.

Serving Suggestions

• Spread on warm biscuits, toast, or English muffins.
• Use as a filling for cinnamon rolls, hand pies, or cake layers.
• Swirl into oatmeal, overnight oats, or Greek yogurt.
• Serve alongside pork chops for a sweet and savory combo.
• Gift in small jars with a cute ribbon for the holidays!

Recipe