It’s Thirsty Thursday. I don’t know about where you live, but around my neck of the woods, it means drink specials at local bars. Well, this particular writer is not a big drinker. So at the GraveYard Press, Thirsty Thursdays are dedicated to club reviews, drink reviews/recipes, and food reviews/recipes. Have something you want featured? Let us know and we’ll put it up for you!
To start things off, let me tell you about my most recent cooking adventure. At my convenience store, we sell apples. We get two deliveries twice a week. This ensures that our apples are always fresh but can lead to a lot of “waste”. Typically it is the bananas but this week, it was apples. I brought home about 25 apples and decided to make Apple Butter. I scoured the Internet for a recipe and this is what I found:
http://andreasrecipes.com/2011/10/20/slow-cooker-apple-butter/
Think homemade Apple Butter is hard? It isn’t. Yes, it takes a while to cut and peel the apples – especially enough to fill a 6 or 7 quart crock pot, but it is so worth it. Plus, unlike store bought Apple Butter, you control the ingredients and degree of sweetness. Also, I will let you know I did not use the recommended Apple Cider, but rather 100% no sugar added Apple Juice.
Equipment
6-quart slow cooker
apple wedge slicer
potato masher
immersion blender (or a jar blender)
Ingredients
16 medium to large Gala apples, unpeeled, cored, and cut into wedges (Might be slightly more or less, just enough to fill your slow cooker.)
2 cups (220 g) light brown sugar or raw sugar
1-1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 cup (240 ml) apple cider
pinch of salt
Preparation
1. Add enough apple slices to cover the bottom of the slow cooker. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of brown sugar and some of the cinnamon over the slices. Repeat until you’ve used all of the apples, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Add a pinch of salt and pour the apple cider over the apples. Toss the apples with a wooden spoon.
2. Cover and cook on low for 10 to 12 hours, or overnight. Remove the lid, mash the apples down with a potato masher, and stir to mix. Leave the lid off and continue cooking on low, mashing and stirring occasionally, until the mixture has reduced to about 1/3 and is thick. Turn off the slow cooker and allow the mixture to come to room temperature.
3. Use an immersion blender (or jar blender) to purée the cooled mixture until it’s very smooth. Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 months or in the freezer for up to 3 months. You may also process jars using the boiling water method.
Variations
Use 1 cup maple syrup and 1 cup brown sugar to sweeten the apples.
Try this spice mix: 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves, and 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice.
If using a 4-quart slow cooker, adjust the number of apples (about 8 medium to large apples), and reduce the sugar to 1-1/2 cups.
The Graveyard Press 