Preservation Apple Butter

apple butter

(from Miss Leslie's Complete Cookery, by Eliza Leslie, 1851)

Ingredients:

​

cider, enough to fill a very large kettle, plus some reserve​

fine juicy apples​

powdered cinnamon​

cloves​

nutmeg​

​

Instructions:

​

This is a compound of apples and cider boiled together till of the consistence of soft butter. It is a very good article on the tea table, or at luncheon. It can only be made of sweet new cider fresh from the press, and not yet fermented.​

​

Fill a very large kettle with cider, and boil it till reduced to one half the original quantity. Then have ready some fine juicy apples pared, cored, and quartered; and put as many into the kettle as can be kept moist by the cider. Stir it frequently, and when the apples are stewed quite soft, take them out with a skimmer that has holes in it, and put them into a tub. Then add more apples to the cider, and stew them soft in the same manner, stirring them nearly all the time with a stick. Have at hand some more cider ready boiled, to thin the apple butter in case you should find it too thick in the kettle.​

​

If you make a large quantity, (and it is not worth while to prepare apple butter on a small scale,) it will take a day to stew the apples. At night leave them to cool in the tubs, (which must be covered with cloths,) and finish next day by boiling the apple and cider again till the consistence is that of soft marmalade, and the colour a very dark brown.​

​

Twenty minutes or half an hour before you finally take it from the fire, add powdered cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg to your taste. If the spice is boiled too long, it will lose its flavour.​

​

When it is cold, put it into stone jars, and cover it closely. If it has been well made, and sufficiently boiled, it will keep a year or more.​

​

It must not be boiled in a brass or bell-metal kettle, on account of the verdigris which the acid will collect in it, and which will render the apple butter extremely unwholesome, not to say poisonous.​

Image by Laurabrager​

 

[FedericoFCavada]

 

[Reconstructed Rebel]

apple butter
View attachment 409562(from Miss Leslie's Complete Cookery, by Eliza Leslie, 1851)

Ingredients:

​

cider, enough to fill a very large kettle, plus some reserve​

fine juicy apples​

powdered cinnamon​

cloves​

nutmeg​

​

Instructions:

​

This is a compound of apples and cider boiled together till of the consistence of soft butter. It is a very good article on the tea table, or at luncheon. It can only be made of sweet new cider fresh from the press, and not yet fermented.​

​

Fill a very large kettle with cider, and boil it till reduced to one half the original quantity. Then have ready some fine juicy apples pared, cored, and quartered; and put as many into the kettle as can be kept moist by the cider. Stir it frequently, and when the apples are stewed quite soft, take them out with a skimmer that has holes in it, and put them into a tub. Then add more apples to the cider, and stew them soft in the same manner, stirring them nearly all the time with a stick. Have at hand some more cider ready boiled, to thin the apple butter in case you should find it too thick in the kettle.​

​

If you make a large quantity, (and it is not worth while to prepare apple butter on a small scale,) it will take a day to stew the apples. At night leave them to cool in the tubs, (which must be covered with cloths,) and finish next day by boiling the apple and cider again till the consistence is that of soft marmalade, and the colour a very dark brown.​

​

Twenty minutes or half an hour before you finally take it from the fire, add powdered cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg to your taste. If the spice is boiled too long, it will lose its flavour.​

​

When it is cold, put it into stone jars, and cover it closely. If it has been well made, and sufficiently boiled, it will keep a year or more.​

​

It must not be boiled in a brass or bell-metal kettle, on account of the verdigris which the acid will collect in it, and which will render the apple butter extremely unwholesome, not to say poisonous.​

Image by Laurabrager​

Very interesting. I'm surprised there is no sugar added to it. To anyone who has eaten old fashioned Apple butter, would you say it was very sweet? I have always imagined it tasting like Apple pie filling.

 

[FedericoFCavada]

I had a Christmas dinner with some gracious folks from the Ozarks once, and they served home-made biscuits with home-made apple butter... It really did taste like Christmas!

 

[donna]

Was able to buy Apple Butter from The Apple Barn's Market in Pigeon Forge, Tn. They have a great restaurant too. One of our favorite places to eat. Actually they have 2 restaurants. Was able to go to both on different evenings. They always serve their fritters and apple butter.

 

[Sowbelly and Hardtack]

My favorite ! This time of year my wife makes pumpkin butter!