Lazy Person’s Apple Butter
One jar (46-48 ounces) of natural applesauce (i.e. unsweetened)
Two cups apple cider (the juice, not the alcoholic stuff — though that might be interesting…)
One cup of dark brown sugar
One stick of cinnamon (about 3 inches long)
Put all this mixed-up in a crock pot (I used my old, small, doesn’t-come-apart one) and cook on low overnight (I think I did it for 12-14 hours), then on high for as long as you can stand (I went another 4) with the lid off so it has a chance to thicken. Stir every so often. Pour back into the (cleaned) applesauce jar and store in the fridge.
I suppose you could process it for longer term storage, but I’ve never gotten the hang of canning. It’ll probably keep a couple of weeks in the fridge (how long does opened applesauce last? about that long, I’d guess).
This is the first time I’ve done it, and I’m already thinking of how I might change it — most likely would be a longer time on high so it gets thicker. Mine is still roughly applesauce texture, not quite as thick as I would like. I might even try it without the cider; maybe add a little bit of cider vinegar for tartness. I bought a lot of those big jars of applesauce ’cause they were on sale, so I’ll have a couple of opportunities for modifications.
(the original recipe came from only-Safari-knows-where and even then I didn’t follow it)
