Video tutorial on pre-1900 shelf stable apple butter

Paul wanted me to share this really cool video here - check it out!



This is a very detailed video tutorial by Steven Edholm of SkillCult that explains how to create an old-fashioned, shelf stable version of apple butter.

This guy was working with very sweet, ripe apples very late in the season, so he actually didn't even need to add any sugar. I'm from the south myself, so not adding sugar to apple butter of any kind is news to me.

Rather than the stuff you get at the store, which has the consistency of a denser applesauce, this type of original apple butter was actually meant to have the consistency of real butter - stiff, but spreadable on bread.

In the video, he explains that in olden days, they would make this stuff every 7 to 25 years, though he's not sure what particular storage method he prefers just yet - he jars up his finished product a few different ways, but ultimately, only time will tell which one keeps them the best.

Have you ever tried an heirloom recipe like this before? Has anyone ever made apple butter like this?

Also, just because I really like this guy's blog, I'm linking to his store here, where he has some really unique, homemade products for sale.

I've edited this post to add some steam juicers that may make the process a little easier for some -



For those that like to try to avoid products made in China, here's a nice one from Finland! Shiny!



This one's a bit more budget-friendly.

Not exactly the same but could be if the juice was boiled down. I use a steam juicer Iquarte the apples and remove only the stems and bad spots. and put them on to steam. While they are steaming I pick the notorious Hymalayan black berries that I have trellised for easy picking. When I return the apples have settled down half way and I put the berries on top and let them steam. When the berries look cooked I drain off the hot juice int sterile containers and seal. I then ladle the hot pulp into the Champion juice mill which separates the pulp from the seeds and skins. The hot apple berry butter can be jarred and put in the water bath immediately or frozen. It is spreadable but not stiff like jelly or jam. It could be processed as in the video above to concentrate the juice and stir in the pulp. The pectin from the peals will make it jell.
I freeze most of it because I use it for smoothies and the juice for parties. My apprentice was doing the batch in the pictures so she was jarring and waterbathing the apple/berry butter. You can see the drain tube for the juicer in the picture.

Hans Quistorff wrote:Not exactly the same but could be if the juice was boiled down. I use a steam juicer

Thank you so much for sharing Hans! I was wondering if there were any neato kitchen gadgets that could be used for this process, I feel like I would almost certainly burn my apple butter!

Where did you get that steam juicer? This is the first time I've ever heard of such a magnificent thing!

If you right click on the image you will se it is from Amazon. There are several makes available. They can handle many types of fruit and the juice is ready to to be sealed for storage when it comes out of the spigot or drain tube.

For less expensive separating the pulp from seeds and skins this food mill works almost as fast

SkillCult is the bomb! They have fantastic content of all that is of interest to the kinds of people who frequent Permies. When I saw the dailyish email, I though "I'm going right over there to post the SkillCult recipe." Haha, it turned out to be the subject of the thread. Seriously, check out SkillCult. From potato onions, to making your own lime, to grafting, to fermentation, to tanning, to glue making, to biochar--all kinds of relevent stuff, presented in the most awesome and professional manner. Steven knows his stuff and knows how to share it, too. A fantastic internet resource: http://skillcult.com .

Destiny Hagest wrote:Paul wanted me to share this really cool video here - check it out!

This is a very detailed video tutorial by Steven Edholm of SkillCult that explains how to create an old-fashioned, shelf stable version of apple butter.

This guy was working with very sweet, ripe apples very late in the season, so he actually didn't even need to add any sugar. I'm from the south myself, so not adding sugar to apple butter of any kind is news to me.

Rather than the stuff you get at the store, which has the consistency of a denser applesauce, this type of original apple butter was actually meant to have the consistency of real butter - stiff, but spreadable on bread.

In the video, he explains that in olden days, they would make this stuff every 7 to 25 years, though he's not sure what particular storage method he prefers just yet - he jars up his finished product a few different ways, but ultimately, only time will tell which one keeps them the best.

Have you ever tried an heirloom recipe like this before? Has anyone ever made apple butter like this?

Also, just because I really like this guy's blog, I'm linking to his store here, where he has some really unique, homemade products for sale.

Steve sells seeds (he only has leek up now but has others sometimes) and they are amazing: I've gotten literally 100% germination and great growth from them.

It's not just apple cheese I have recipes for lots of other fruit cheeses if folks are interested .

David

Amazing, thanks for posting. These food techniques are very important to get children involved with if we want these ideas to keep on. I've said it once and I'll say it again here 'Applying academic knowledge acquired from ancient methods.'

What were the non-electrical tools used during your research into the historical accounts? I simply dont want to invest in those pot or juicers.

Does anyone make this? Is it shelf stable?
We're giving it a go now.

I made some, a couple years ago. Been sitting in a cabinet at room temp ever since, and is at least as good as the day it was made. It's amazing. Completely impervious to mold and decay.

Use sweet bland apples if you can, because the acids as well as the sugars concentrate, and can become overpowering. Mine's very pleasant, but would be better if it were a bit less piquant. I've got some suitable apple trees in the pipeline, but they won't be bearing for some years yet.

Steven Edholm has some of the best content online over at SkillCult, not only about food preservation, but tanning hides, all things axes, grafting and breeding apples, gardening, burning lime, biochar--a very eclectic selection. Not only is Steven's commentary insightful, rational, and packed with obscure and fascinating factoids, the production quality of his videos is very high. All connoisseurs of information will appreciate the density of substance and level of presentation furnished by SkillCult.

 Great video while I drank my morning coffee. My grandmother grew up dirt poor in in  Naticoke, Pennsylvania. i have heard stories of her packing mt grandfather his lunch for the coal mines. Potato pancake sandwiches and apple butter. The woman ate it most mornings till the day she passed away. If I knew what I knew now,I wish that i had picked her brain more on the cooking/food preservation aspect of homesteading.....Oh pickled beets,the woman loved pickled beets. ....Larry

It sure is making a mess but it tastes pretty good.
This is the second night of cooking down, we started yesterday evening and had more than we could fit in the pot initially.

It sure is making a mess

I wonder if at that point it would be better to finish it in a food dehydrator to avoid the little steam volcanos?

I've made apple butter before, but it didn't turn out like that. Very interesting, especially that it's shelf stable. I looked at his video both here and on YouTube. He has an update on YouTube, stating that some of his apple butter has kept well for 5 years. That's pretty amazing!

I'm wondering if I can do this with pears.