Last month Dear Husband and I purchased a half bushel of apples at the Farmer’s Market. I’ve used them in a variety of ways: chunky applesauce, apple pie, apple crisp, pork and apples. I have some left, and I still hope to get to the apple butter.<\/p>\n
Last month Dear Husband and I purchased a half bushel of apples at the Farmer’s Market. I’ve used them in a variety of ways: chunky applesauce, apple pie, apple crisp, pork and apples. I have some left, and I still … Continue reading
\nIt’s been some time since I last made apple butter, and I can’t remember which recipe I used. I browsed through my cookbooks last night, and this is the basic recipe I think I’ll follow:
\n5 pounds of tart apples
\n2 cups of cider
\n1 1\/2 cups of sugar
\nA dash of salt
\n2 teaspoons of cinnamon
\n1 teaspoon of cloves
\n1\/2 teaspoon of allspice
\nGrated rind and juice of one lemon
\nThe amounts for the sugar, and spices are approximate.
\nDo not peel and core the apples. Cut them into pieces and place them in a pot. Cover with cider (or water) and cook until soft. Put everything through a food mill or sieve. Return the sieved material to the pot and add the sugar, a dash of salt, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, lemon juice and rind.
\nCook, covered, over low heat until the sugar dissolves. Taste, and adjust the seasonings at this point. Uncover and cook quickly, stirring constantly to prevent burning until thick and smooth when a bit is spooned onto a cold plate.
\nPour into hot, sterilized jars and seal. This recipe makes about ten six ounce jars.
\nSeveral things come to mind. You need to attend to the jars before you begin cooking the apples. They can be run through the dishwasher to be sterilized, but you should heat the lids and rings in a pan of boiling water.
\nAs for the lemon rind, be careful to get just the zest, the bright yellow portion, and not the paler pith that makes the inner layer. Roll the lemon across the counter, pressing with the heel of your hand. Slice it into two halves, crosswise. Use a small juicer to extract the juice, and then grate the zest.
\nThe basic recipe above is from “The Fanny Farmer Cookbook<\/a>.” “Stocking Up<\/a>” uses honey to taste in place of the sugar. Campbell’s “Great American Cookbook<\/a>” omits the spices, uses equal amounts of cider and peeled apples, and uses more sugar: 2 cups of granulated sugar and 1 cup packed brown sugar.
\nApple butter is like pasta in Italy. Every cook has a recipe that suits her taste. I prefer one with lots of spices, and I’d rather cook with sugar than honey. I’ll have to let you know how this turns out.
\nN.B. The links to the cookbooks are for versions of the cookbooks more current than mine. You might want to be sure that the Apple Butter recipe is there before buying the newer edition, but all three of these books are well worth having.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"