Name: 🍎 Healthy Slow Cooker Apple Butter
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 14 h
Total time: 14 h 10 min
Yield: 10
Ingredients: 5 lbs apples (choose a sweet apple like gala, fuji or honeycrsip); 1/2 cup of fresh pressed apple cider (no sugar added); 1 tbsp cinnamon; 1 tsp nutmeg or pie spice; 2-4 tbsp local honey (omit to make it vegan)

Add a little bit of Autumn to any dish with this super simple slow cooker recipe.

Jump To Recipe

September in the Pacific Northwest means the sun is suddenly setting before 8pm, the mornings are beginning to feel crisp, and it’s also time to plan a morning out with the family picking apples at our favorite farm… and the rest of the weekend probably turning those apples into something delicious. Did you know that when apples (or any type of produce) is in season, it contains more nutrients than when it’s not? It’s also, obviously, the most delicious! What better reason than to make all kinds of delicious apple-y treats.

There are so many things you can do with a basket (or two or three) full of fresh picked apples - apple pie filling, apple muffins, apple chips, and of course just a bowl of fresh apples to munch on for the next couple of weeks. And then of course there’s this super easy apple butter recipe.

This apple butter recipe doesn’t use any kind of ultra-processed sugar like typical apple butter recipes call for. Apples are naturally sweet! And slow cooking them on low like we do in this recipe allows for their natural sugars to caramelize and sweeten your apple butter perfectly. But, sweetness does vary from one apple variety to the next, so feel free to add a little natural sweetener like honey, maple syrup, or coconut sugar if you’d like to add a little more sweetness (see recipe below for more).

Choosing Ingredients:

The ingredients here are simple… we’re just using apples, some spices, and a little bit of sweetener, if desired. Couldn’t be easier!

Apples

When it comes to apple butter, the sweeter the variety - the better! Look for Gala, Fuji, or Honeycrisp varieties. If you’re fortunate enough to live somewhere where u-pick apple farms are available, I highly recommend spending an afternoon with the family out at a farm and picking your own! There’s nothing quite like cooking foods that you’ve picked yourself.

If you’re not close to a u-pick farm, check the farmer’s market or your local grocery store for apples. They’re plentiful everywhere this time of year! Choose organic whenever possible to minimize exposure to potentially harmful chemical residue.

Apple Cider

Apple butter needs a little bit of liquid. By using apple cider instead of water, you get a richer apple flavor and a little added sweetness without having to add sugar. Opt for cider that is made with only apples, not added sugar, colors, or other ingredients. When it’s Fall, you can find apple cider just about anywhere you can find apples.

Sweetener

Most apple butter recipes call for brown or white sugar, but this recipe uses the slow cooker to bring out the apples’ natural sweetness. Apples do vary from variety to variety, so if you’d like to add a little extra sweetness, I prefer using honey or maple syrup instead, or coconut sugar, if you’re really looking for that brown sugar flavor.

When it’s done, your apple butter should turn a beautiful, deep brown caramelized color.

From here, you can either freeze or can your apple butter (which will last several months) give out as gifts to your friends and neighbors, or simply store in the fridge for about a week and enjoy it on anything and everything!

Our favorite ways to enjoy this treat is spread atop warm sourdough toast (along with a little grass-fed butter), stirred into oatmeal or a bowl of yogurt, eaten alongside pork chops, and even drizzled on top of ice cream!