This simple stovetop apple butter recipe is quick, easy, and has no processed sugar! Fresh apples, cinnamon, and a bit of maple syrup make this sauce rich and velvety. Vegetarian, Vegan.
Let's talk apple butter!
This easy, cozy, use-it-on-anything dip is one of fall's most magical elixirs.
We make ours without processed or refined sugar: A splash of maple syrup is all you need to complement the natural sweetness of fresh fall apples.
Also? No peeling necessary! A good immersion blender will smooth out those apple peels; there's no need to spend extra prep time removing the skins.
All you'll need:
- Fresh apples
- Cinnamon
- Cloves
- Lemon Juice
- Maple Syrup
- Pinch of salt
No maple syrup?
If you aren't vegan, honey is a great replacement here. We've also swapped brown sugar, molasses, and apple cider for the maple syrup with good results!
Which apples should I use?
Our rule of thumb: Use any apples you like to eat! You can stick with one variety, or mix a few of your favorites together.
We've tested this recipe with more than a dozen apple varieties, including Red Delicious, Sansa, Granny Smith (these make a very tart but very cool apple butter!), Honeycrisp, Fuji, McIntosh, Liberty, and plenty more! They're all good.
While the apples you use will impact the final flavor and consistency of your sauce (sweeter apples = sweeter apple butter), you can always adjust the flavor by stirring in more spices, lemon juice, or maple syrup once it's blended.
How to make apple butter
- Prep. Core and chop the apples and throw them in a saucepan with the spices, lemon juice, and maple syrup.
- Cook. Cover and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 1-2 hours until apples have softened (and your house smells like heaven).
- Blend. Turn off the heat, let the apples cool for at least 15 minutes, then purée with an immersion blender until smooth.
How to use apple butter
Some of our favorite places to add a spoonful of this cozy sauce:
- Overnight oats
- Pork chops
- Grilled cheese sandwiches (it's excellent on this bacon and brie sandwich!)
- Ice cream
- Goat cheese or apple butter brie crostini
Apple butter is also delicious in baked goods! We love using it in:
PS - See all of our favorite ways to use this spread in our Apple Butter Recipe Collection!
A few recipe FAQs
Yes! You'll need a few small tweaks to make this work perfectly for a crock pot: see our slow cooker apple butter recipe for all the details.
Let it cool completely, then store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week, or in the freezer for several months. We like freezing apple butter in small mason jars with tight-fitting lids, then defrosting a jar in the fridge overnight whenever you need one.
This recipe has not been tested for pH levels or other safe canning practices, so we do not recommend canning it with a water bath or pressure canner. If you’d like a recipe that’s been tested for safe home canning, we recommend this one from Ball!
The final consistency will depend on the water content of the apples you use, and it can vary quite a bit each time: don’t worry if your apple butter looks a little runny right after you blend it! Just return the saucepan to the stove over low heat and cook, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until it reaches your desired consistency. Apple butter will also thicken a little as it cools!
Let the cooked apples cool completely, then put the mixture through a food mill or blend in a food processor until smooth. Regular blenders are a little hit-or-miss with this recipe: most high-powered blenders will do just fine, but this mixture is a bit too thick for some of the older blenders we've tested and doesn't always blend smoothly. We recommend an immersion blender, food mill, or food processor for best results!
Video: How to make apple butter
Easy Apple Butter
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Total Time: 2 hours 10 minutes
- Yield: Makes 2 cups 1x
- Category: Sauce
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Easy homemade stovetop apple butter with no processed sugar.
Ingredients
- 5 medium apples (about 3 pounds) cored and roughly chopped
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
Instructions
- Stir all ingredients together in a medium-sized pot. Cover and cook on low heat, stirring occasionally, for 1-2 hours, until apples have softened and reduced.
- Turn off the heat, remove the lid, and let apples cool for at least 15 minutes.
- Blend apple mixture with an immersion blender until smooth.
- If you want to thicken your apple butter, return it to the stove over low heat and let it cook down until it's reached your desired consistency.
- Serve apple butter warm or let it cool and keep it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
Notes
Additions and Substitutions. Use honey, molasses, or brown sugar in place of the maple syrup. Use more or less of the cinnamon, cloves, and lemon to suit your personal taste. Add a splash of bourbon or whiskey to the apples as they cook for extra depth of flavor.
What kind of apples should I use? Use any apple varieties you like, or mix a few different varieties together! The sweeter the apples you use, the sweeter your apple butter will be. We've tested this recipe with more than a dozen apple varieties (Granny Smith, Red Delicious, Honeycrisp, Sansa, Fuji, McIntosh, and Liberty are just a few) and they've all worked well.
Do I need to peel the apples? We don't bother to peel the apples in this recipe: a good immersion blender will purée everything quite well and you won't even notice the peels! That said, if you want the smoothest possible apple butter, you can peel the apples beforehand and/or run the apple butter through a food mill to remove any texture.
To store, let apple butter cool completely, then transfer to airtight containers (we love using small mason jars). Store in the fridge for up to a week or in the freezer for several months (we've kept it up to a year in the freezer with no quality loss). Let frozen apple butter thaw overnight in the fridge when you're ready to use it.
Looking for a slow cooker version? We have you covered with this crock pot apple butter recipe.
Exact cook times vary pretty widely with homemade apple butter: the water content of your apples has a big impact on timing and consistency, and every stove is different, so it's useful to check in on the apple butter frequently as it cooks and go by visual cues as opposed to just a timer. I generally take 2 hours to cook the apples before blending, and follow with another 30 minutes on low heat to thicken; one of our recipe testers on the opposite coast generally only needs one hour on the stovetop before her apples are ready to blend.
Wondering what to do with apple butter? Spread it over a toasted slice of small batch crusty bread or a pumpkin biscuit, add a dollop to some brie crostini, or use it in baked goods like apple butter muffins, apple butter coffee cake, and apple butter spice cake.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ¼ cup
- Calories: 87
- Sugar: 17.9 g
- Sodium: 75.3 mg
- Fat: 0.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 23 g
- Protein: 0.3 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
brad
This was the lowest sugar recipe without resorting to artificial sweeteners. I don't know if its good yet ... better be... I have 10lbs of apples in a pot on the stove. 😀 I picked 40 lbs of yellow transparent apples and am trying to eat, dry, and process them before they go bad.
brad
Oh, and the five cups I assumed comes to 2lbs, give or take. Used 1 1/2 cups of organic maple syrup.
brad
Making another batch...good stuff. I looked it up... Average apple is .33lbs, so 5 apples would be 1.65lbs. I'm using crab apples this time and needed the weight conversion.Doubling the recipe to about 3.3 lbs.
Jessie @ Life As A Strawberry
Thanks for the info, Brad! So happy you're enjoying the recipe!
Eliana
Hahaha! I love how you call it goop! I am going to make this very soon! Just got a bunch of cooking apples 🙂
Jackie @ Life As A Strawberry
Thanks, Eliana! Be sure to let us know how it turns out 🙂
KArissa
😊 so good
Jackie @ Life As A Strawberry
Hi Karissa - Thanks! We love to hear when recipes are enjoyed 🙂
Rachel
Amazing!!! Just got done making this and it’s delicious. I will making a much bigger batch for the holidays!
Jessie
Wahoo! I'm so glad you liked it, Rachel!
Judy
Can you msje this and put into jars? If so how long will it last?
Jessie
This recipe hasn't been tested for canning, but it keeps well in jars in the freezer for several months!
Nancy
Just made your apple butter, super easy, and delicious. Even though I am originally from maple syrup country in Ontario i don't like maple syrup so I used a mix of honey and brown sugar. It worked great! Thank so much
Nancy
Oh, and I had small apples from the trees in our yard so I used 10 small.
Jessie
I'm so glad you liked it, Nancy! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out!
Victoria
Hello! How long would this receipe keep in a freezable container? Love the simplicity of the receipe! Brings back memories of the good ol days with my mom and grandma!
Jessie
Thanks, Victoria! I've kept it in airtight containers in the freezer for up to a year with no problems. I usually store it in a small mason jar so it's pre-portioned for easy snacking!
Sarah
This recipe looks amazing...wondering if you know about how many cups your 5 apples made? My apple tree yielded pretty small apples this year so I doubt my 5 would equal your 5 - lol
Jessie
I usually get about 1.5 cups. The recipe is very forgiving though, so you can definitely play around with the quantity of apples! I honestly don't even measure for this recipe anymore when I make it - I just kind of throw in as many apples as I have and eyeball the other ingredients. 🙂
Tish
How long will it keep in fridge??
Jessie
It keeps up to a week in the fridge, and it freezes wonderfully as well!
Rae Rocco
So, not not so much as Comment as question. Do you use whole cloves on ground cloves? I would think ground since you don't strain the butter before blending it.
Jessie
Ground cloves!
Mary Lou
It’s on the stove cooking, and I have been tasting when I stir it—so delicious. I was so happy I didn’t have to peel the apples, woohoo. I had 17 apples that were getting a bit soft. Also, I didn’t have ground cloves so I put whole cloves in my Vitamix, worked out perfect. I am glad I read the comment, lots of good options. Thanks heaps for posting this recipe.
Mary Lou
I didn’t have ground cloves, so I put whole cloves about 1/3 of the can in my Vitamix blender, which gave me extra. My house smells heavenly. Thanks heaps!
Bridget
So delicious! I only used a tablespoon of molasses (all I had left) for the sugar since I was out of maple syrup and it turned out rich and lightly sweet. This turned out easier than I expected too! Thanks for the recipe.
Jessie
I'm so happy you liked it! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out!
Kate
I can't stop laughing at the brown gloop for viewing pleasure lol! It's exactly how I feel any time I try to take a photo of food I've made. I'm terrible at presentation, but I hear good things about taste so I figure it's ok! Thanks for this recipe. I'm pretty excited because the only store that sells a good sugar free apple butter (AND without sucralose) is across the city. My son loves it. I might try making a few versions with blueberries or other fruits in it too. ^_^
Jessie
Oh, I am allllll about the brown goop! I hope you love the recipe!
Simone carpenter
Hi , I'm thinking of making this , can you please tell me what I use it on ? Bread etc
Jessie
I frequently just slather it on toast for breakfast! But you can also use it as a topping for crostini, a glaze for chicken or fish, or as filling for cinnamon rolls. Hope that helps!
KAYLA
Or just eat it out of the jar. My grandma used to make this for me all the time. Pretty close to hers I added nutmeg and ginger. Also to can it just put in your mason jars and follow the normal steps to canning. Holds for 6 months.
Jessie
"Or just eat it out of the jar" <-- I fully support this plan 🙂
Jeane Phelps
I love it on biscuits !! what do you store it in ?
Jessie
I keep it in a mason jar in the fridge!
Varsha
Hi! I tried the recipe and let it cook for three hours altogether but I'm still not happy with the consistency...it's still like applesauce. Any tips?
Jessie
Hi Varsha, the cooking time can vary based on the types of apples you use, the water content of the apples, etc. - if the apple butter hasn't thickened enough I'd recommend letting it simmer even longer until you're happy with the consistency! You could also play with the add-ins if you're looking for a different texture - extra maple syrup, brown sugar, or a pat of butter melted into the apple butter can alter the texture if you're finding it to applesauce-y. I hope that helps!
Varsha
I thought about adding a pat of butter...just got the reassurance I needed! I did simmer it all day today and the texture is great now. Thank you so much!
Jessie
Oh good, I'm so glad! Thanks for letting me know how it worked out!
Joyce Miller
Can this be processed in a water bath?
Jessie
I don't have much experience with water baths, so I couldn't say for sure!
Katie
This looks so good. I am glad you manipulated the recipe to let the sweetness of the apple shine. I'm trying this as soon as I can!
Jessie
Thanks so much, Katie!