Ingredients
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3 to 5 lbs of apples (any variety) 1/2 cup honey (any variety) 2 Tbsp of Cinnamon 1/2 tsp Allspice 1/2 tsp ground cloves 1 cup Zinfandel Blush wine
Procedure
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Peel and core the apples (It's really not necessary to peel them, but it cooks a
bit faster. Not much.) Chop the apples into about 1/2 to 1/4 pieces. puree the
apples in a food processor (If you need to add some liquid to help puree the
apples use a little wine.) Once the puree is completed, place the apples in the
slow cooker. Add the wine, honey, cinnamon, allspice, and cloves. Mix
thoroughly. Turn the slow cooker on high and place the lid on the cooker. Cook
the apple mixture for 9 to 10 hours stirring the mixture every hour (depending
upon the heat of the cooker.) When the mixture is stirred also scrap the sides
down into the mixture. At about 8 hours remove the top from the cooker so that
moisture will be removed. When the apple mixture has turned dark brown and is
very thick it's time to taste and adjust the spice mixture to the intensity
desired. (Remember that the spice measurements identified above are only
guidelines. If you like to add ginger or omit some of the recommended spices,
do it! It's your apple butter.)
When the apple butter has reached the desired consistency and thickness place in
an air tight container and refrigerate. This many apples should cook down to
make no more that a quart of apple butter. This recipe may also be used for
canning. If so then simply pour the boiling mixture into scaled 1/2 pint jars
with about 1/2 inch of space left at the top of the jar and then seal and
process the filled jars in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.
