Fall winds are beginning to sing and it’s time to break out the cozy sweaters, warm spices, and apple butter!
Apple picking anyone? It’s the perfect time to head out to a local orchard and stock up. While produce can be tricky in droves, especially anyone hoping to avoid food waste, apple butter is a great way to savor their deliciousness for months to come! Not to mention, a fun surprise to throw into any care packages you might be sending to loved ones.
All that being said-- it takes time to process produce. Sometimes, a whole weekend goes to the project, and we don’t always have that kind of time. Enter in-- the instant pot.
The Instant pot is seriously my favorite kitchen appliance. For anyone who loves home-cooked meals while trying to juggle work and a social life, it is a must-have appliance. Here’s a recipe for No Peel Instant Pot Apple Butter that can be made and packaged in less than thirty minutes.
Step 1: Make the Spice Blend (Optional)
For this blend, I used mostly whole ingredients and used about half-1 teaspoon of each spice. You can play around with the ratios depending on which flavors you would like to accent.
Begin by grating some fresh ginger. Then, place the cardamom pods in the mortar and pestle and gently break them open, taking out the little seeds. Remove the pod shells and leave the seeds. Add the fresh grated ginger, cloves, and all spice, and grind them down to a medium-fine consistency. Once you are happy with the texture, add the ground cinnamon and mix them all together.
Step 2: Cut the Apples
Since this is a no peel recipe, go ahead and cut your apples into eighths. The instant pot will cook them down well, we just want to help the process along a bit.
Step 3: Ready the Instant Pot
Place all the ingredients into the Instant Pot and set the manual timer for 15 minutes. Make sure the steam valve is closed.
Step 4: Vent the steam
Once the timer goes off, turn the knob and allow the steam to vent naturally.
Step 5: Blend Ingredients
Once the steam has fully vented, place all of the contents into a high powered blender. Blend for about one minute until desired consistency if reached. Since the peels have been left on, you can achieve a thicker consistency if you would like, or puree it smooth.
Step 6: Enjoy & Package
Grab your jars and fill!