I certainly did not invent apple butter, although that would be pretty awesome if I did.  I’m also certainly not the first to put a recipe for apple butter on their blog.  But I’m putting a little spin on the typical apple butter today for your DIY post of the week.

I actually had never really tried apple butter until I met Adam.  His grandma sent us home from a visit once with some apple butter and it was delicious.  It was smoother and creamier than applesauce and that was what I loved about it.  It’s funny that Adam was technically the one to introduce me to apple butter since the man doesn’t like cooked apples!  I know, he’s weird.

Anyway, most apple butter is made with a TON of sugar.   Besides adding sweetness, it helps preserve the apple butter.  That’s fine for some, but since I don’t do refined or much added sugar, I wanted to try an apple butter that didn’t use sugar.  To me, cooked apples are already fairly sweet.  Plus if you add in spices like cinnamon it ups the sweet factor.  I also wanted to do something to make my apple butter even smoother.  Pureed squash is really smooth and creamy plus it tends to lean toward the sweet side.  And squash is just awesome in general so I thought why not add it into my apple butter.

Luckily it worked out and I ended up with a fall hybrid butter that is perfect on toast, in oatmeal, on pancakes, or on a peanut butter sandwich.  It is so easy to make your own apple butter and it will cost a lot less than buying it from the apple orchard or specialty shops.  So if you have a plethora of apples hanging around and want to try something a little different than your typical apple butter, give this squash apple butter a try!

Squash Apple Butter

• 5 to 6 large apples of different varieties, I used a mix of sweet and tart like granny smith and gala.
• 2 cups diced butternut squash, you could also try pumpkin or delicata
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 2 to 3 cinnamon sticks, optional
• 2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg, optional
• 1 tsp ground cloves, optional
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon, optional

1. Place sliced apples, cubed squash, and cinnamon sticks if you are using them into a slow cooker.  You want to make sure you fill the cooker almost to the top leaving just a little space.
2. Cook on high for 4 hours.  If your apples and squash start sticking, you can use a little water.  Don’t use too much because you don’t want a watery butter.
3. After 4 hours, the apples and squash should be fairly soft.  Remove the cinnamon sticks and smash everything else with a potato masher or fork and transfer the whole thing to a blender.  You could also use an immersion blender.  Puree the apples and squash until super smooth.  This is important to make sure you have a smooth and creamy butter.
4. Return the puree to the slow cooker and cook on high for another hour.  At the end stir in the lemon juice and any spices you want.
5. Allow the whole mixture to cool before you transfer to jars or other airtight containers.  Store in the fridge.

I have really liked swirling this into my oatmeal in the morning.  The whole thing just reminds me of fall and that makes me happy!

In other news, my little sister is getting married this weekend ( 😀 😀 😀 😀 ) and I am just a tad busy helping her with that!  While I have plenty of new recipes to share with you, my Friday post will be a round-up of my favorite fall recipes around the blog world.  I hope you have a great Wednesday and see you soon!