Slow Cooker Apple Butter will make your entire house smell like Autumn. It also makes a great gift for the holidays, or a hostess gift at Thanksgiving. YUMMO!
Autumn is my favorite season of the year. I am a lover of all things fall – the leaves and pumpkins, cozy sweaters and Ugg boots, a roaring fire with a good book and a plate of my No Bake Cookies, I adore it all – especially apple season.
A neighboring city hosts an Apple Butter Festival every October. It’s full of holiday crafts, historical reenactments, and of course, amazing food.
Although I love meandering through the aisles of vendors, I really go for two very important reasons: caramel slathered apples and homemade apple butter.
Unfortunately, I’ve missed this festival two years in a row – last year because I was in San Francisco and this year because I simply forgot about it. I sulked for a hot minute, but decided that I’d get my yearly apple butter fix by making my own in the slow cooker.
WHAT IS APPLE BUTTER?
If you have never had apple butter before, you might be confused by the name.
No, it’s not apple-flavored butter. That would be weird. There’s actually no butter in apple butter at all.
Apple butter is basically just super concentrated, super smooth applesauce. It’s cooked for longer, which gives it that caramelized color and rich apple flavor, but the ingredients are nearly identical.
Apple butter is not just perfect on your morning toast or served on Potato Rolls at Thanksgiving, you can even bake with it.
Try subbing in Slow Cooker Apple Butter in place of jam or another fruit filling in crumb bars, such as in my Peach Crumb Bars recipe.
HOW TO MAKE APPLE BUTTER IN A CROCK POT
At first I was little bit intimidated by the whole homemade fruit butter thing, but really it could not have been easier thanks to my apple peeler and slow cooker.
The peeler allowed me to peel, core, and slice 6 1/2 pounds of apples in a matter of minutes. I tossed everything into the slow cooker, set the timer for 10 hours and went about my day.
The autumnal scents of apples, cinnamon and vanilla wafted around the whole place for an entire day, which improved my mood immensely. I’ll tell you – if you’re having a rough day, just make some slow cooker apple butter.
It’s impossible not to feel at ease with the entire world and people in it when you’ve got these scents enveloping you each time you walk in and out of your kitchen.
I let the apples simmer away for the allotted 10 hours, and in the meantime made chili, cornbread, and even prepped my jars for gift giving. It really is the perfect way to spend a fall Saturday, I’ll tell you that for free.
The result was a delicious, velvety smooth apple butter that definitely rivals any of the jars that I’ve purchased at the Apple Butter Festival and the best part is – I made it myself!
If you don’t have 10 hours on hand to let the apple butter simmer, don’t worry – I also have a recipe for Instant Pot Apple Butter!
BEST APPLES FOR APPLE BUTTER
Really you can use any apples you happen to have on hand for apple butter.
Generally speaking, softer varieties of apples such as Fuji, Golden Delicious, McIntosh, or Jonagold work better since they cook down faster.
I used a mix of Granny Smith, Fuji and Honeycrisp in my apple butter, and even the crisper varieties broke down well for a smooth apple butter.
The real key is to use a mix of apples to get the best flavor. You can even customize your Slow Cooker Apple butter by using apple pie spice or even pumpkin pie spice instead of the blend I have here, and you could try Mexican vanilla instead of Madagascar.
It’s really easy to make it your own, and I know your family will love slathering it on toast all year long.
I’ve been told you can preserve this recipe through canning, though I haven’t tried it myself. I’d love to know if you’ve tried!
I hope you enjoy this slow cooker apple butter as much as we do.
What are your favorite fruit butter recipes? What should I try next?

Slow Cooker Apple Butter
Slow Cooker Apple Butter will make your entire house smell like Autumn. It also makes a great gift for the holidays, or a hostess gift at Thanksgiving. YUMMO!
Ingredients
- 6 1/2 pounds apples - peeled, cored and sliced
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Place the apples in a slow cooker. In a medium bowl, combine sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg cloves and salt. Pour the mixture over the apples and mix well.
- Cook in slow cooker on low for about 10 hours, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is thickened and dark brown.
- Uncover, stir in vanilla and continue cooking uncovered on low for about 2 hours.
- Use an immersion blender to puree the apple butter until smooth.
- Spoon the mixture into sterile containers, cover and refrigerate for up to two weeks or freeze.
- Serve on breads, muffins, pork chops or just eat it with a spoon.
Notes
- I used a combination of Granny Smith, Fuji and Honey Crisp apples for this recipe.
- The sweetness of your apples will depend on how much sugar you will need to add. Adjust according to your apples and preferences.
- I have not canned this recipe.
Cheryl
Friday 6th of May 2022
I can, using my Ball Book general recipe. 10 mins WB.
Jamie
Tuesday 10th of May 2022
Thanks for taking the time to comment, Cheryl! Happy baking! -Jamie
Barbara
Monday 2nd of May 2022
Hi, I am looking to try to make Apple butter for the first time, I was thinking of using Apple pie spice instead of the spices listed in the recipe, I see where you said it could be substituted, how much apple pie spice would I need to use?
Thanks can’t wait to try the recipe
Jamie
Tuesday 10th of May 2022
Hi Barbara – I would use 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons. Happy baking! -Jamie
Rose
Saturday 30th of April 2022
Makes a nice homemade Sundae using vanilla ice cream.
Jamie
Monday 2nd of May 2022
Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by and comment! Happy baking! -Jamie
Shan
Saturday 9th of April 2022
If you halve this recipe would you need to adjust the cooking time?
Shan
Tuesday 12th of April 2022
@Jamie,
That makes sense, thank you!
Jamie
Monday 11th of April 2022
Hi there – I have not halved this recipe before so I cannot say for sure, but I believe you would need to cook it for the same amount of time so the apples can properly cook down. I would recommend using a smaller (3-qt) slow cooker, too. Hope this helps. Happy baking! -Jamie
Betsy
Thursday 17th of February 2022
Since publishing this, have you tried canning this recipe? I am interested in canning. Thanks!
Lucinda
Sunday 8th of May 2022
@Betsy, I have canned this recipe so many times it's delicious
Jamie
Monday 21st of February 2022
Hi Betsy – I have not tried canning it, but many other commenters have done so successfully and have shared what they tried here in the comments!