Pumpkin Apple Butter

Apple butter is one of those foods that reminds me of my grandmother — my mom’s mom. She was the kindest woman with the BEST laugh. She was grandma. She was always cooking up something good in the kitchen or baking lots of cookies for the grandkids – oh how she loved to spoil us with sweets when we were little. ANYWAY, one Fall day, my brother and I were over at their house and she was making us some toast and asked if we would like apple butter. I hesitantly said yes, not knowing what it was. When I saw my perfectly toasted bread topped with this brown substance, I was not sure what to think…but not wanting to be rude, I tried a bite. And in that moment, I was an apple butter fan.

Fast forward 25 years later, my mom and I took the boys to the apple orchard last weekend to pick some apples. Zach was an apple picking PRO and we came home with a TON of apples. What was I going to do with ALL of these apples! After searching different options for apple recipes, I landed on apple butter – yup – that’s what I was going to make! I washed all of my apples and used my awesome Dial-a-Slice apple slicer (it makes small slices AND big slices depending on the setting – thanks mom and dad!), started throwing ingredients into my slow cooker…I knew I wanted to create a pumpkin apple butter without using sugar so I could make it 21 Day Fix approved – I was a little nervous and just hoped for the best!

We left for a bit to go to the park and when we returned home, OH MY GOODNESS! The aroma of FALL enveloped me as I walked in from the garage. My house smelled amazing! The gorgeous brown hue of the apple butter was taking shape and the apples were ready to be blended. I used my immersion blender to blend the apples until the pumpkin apple butter was smooth. (If you don’t have an immersion blender, I HIGHLY recommend it! This is the one I use – it’s nothing super fancy, but it gets the job done!! I use it for soups too – it is a nice little tool to have in the kitchen and also fairly inexpensive!!) The pumpkin apple butter wasn’t QUITE thick enough, so I added some more apples and continued cooking it until it was to my liking.

I had Zach taste this first. He was hesitant (as I was around his age) but he took a bite. His eyes lit up and he immediately asked for more. Noah wanted in on the action, too. It was a hit with the boys. Then I had Basili (my husband) try it. He was impressed and enjoyed it as well. The next day, mom came over to watch the boys for me, so I had her try it. This was the true test. I watched as she took a spoonful to taste what I had made. She looked at me, smiled and said…’YUP! That’s apple butter alright!’ PASSED WITH FLYING COLORS!!!

This recipe made a little over 4 mason jars of pumpkin apple butter. Now WHAT are you going to do with ALL of that Pumpkin Apple Butter? Here are some ideas for you!

1. Spread for Toast – in this case I would call it a condiment for the 21 Day Fix unless you use A LOT.

2. Spread it over this delicious 21 Day Fix Pumpkin Scone from my friend Jamie Callahan over at Adventures of a Shrinking Princess – have yourself a PUMPKIN EXPLOSION for breakfast – your tastebuds will thank you!

3. Pumpkin Apple Butter Shakeology – YOU HEARD ME! 1 scoop of Chocolate or Vanilla Shakeology, 1/3 cup pumpkin apple butter, a little cashew milk, some water and lots of ice – blend until smooth and enjoy your AMAZING SHAKE!

4. Tie a gift tag with around the lid with some pretty Fall ribbon and give a jar to your friend, neighbor or family member as a gift.

5. Pumpkin Apple Butter Cookies – I am working on a recipe now and will update you when I land on one I like! 🙂

6. For a savory dish, use this as a topping or glaze for a pork chop or ham.

SO MANY GOOD AND DELCIOUS OPTIONS!

Pumpkin Apple Butter - 21 Day Fix Approved

2015-10-01 16:53:44

Yields 4

The taste of Fall in a jar - this pumpkin apple butter is sugar free and you would never know!

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Prep Time

20 min

Cook Time

8 hr

Total Time

8 hr 20 min

Prep Time

20 min

Cook Time

8 hr

Total Time

8 hr 20 min

Ingredients

1. 14 small apples (or 8 large)
2. 2 cups water
3. 2 T cinnamon
4. 1 tsp ground ginger
5. 1/2 T nutmeg
6. 1 tsp ground cloves
7. 1 T lemon juice
8. 1 (14.5 oz) can pure pumpkin (not pie filling)
9. 1/3 cup pure maple syrup

Instructions

1. Slice the apples and place them into your slow cooker, with the skins
2. Add all ingredients
3. Stir to coat and cover
4. Cook on low for about 8 hours
5. Use an immersion blender and blend until smooth. The texture should be fairly thick, not runny
6. Transfer to mason jars and enjoy!

21 Day Fix Counts

1. 1/2 cup = 1 Purple or count as a Condiment if using sparingly
2. *Depends on HOW you are using it. If you are only using a couple of tablespoons, count it as a condiment. If you are using it in your shake, for example, I would count it as a Purple.

By Angela Dimitrelias

Fit Mom Angela http://www.fitmomangelad.com/