MY FIRST INTRODUCTION TO FRUIT BUTTERS came through reading, not eating. During my early elementary school years, I was fascinated by those “When They Were Young” biographies about famous figures in history and read every one I could track down. It was in the book about fellow Philadelphian Betsy Ross that I discovered that butter could be something more than just the dairy product we spread on toast. The book described the young Betsy helping her mother by tending the huge pot of apple butter, as it slowly cooked down over an open fire. I wanted to do that, too.
A few years later, my family found ourselves living in a house in Portland, Oregon, that had a number of antique apple trees. Not wanting those apples to go to waste, my mom and I started making applesauce and later, apple butter. I got my wish.
These days, making fruit butters is a regular part of my year. I like them because they require less additional sweetener than jams and never need pectin. The trade-off you make when you cook up a batch of fruit butter is that your yield will always be smaller than with a batch of jam. But, as I am the only member of my household who likes these sweet spreads, this is actually a plus. Additionally, if you have a tree that produces a massive influx of fruit once a year, you’ll also like this feature.
The other major difference between jams and fruit butters is that the butters get cooked low and slow for a good long time. I’m a big believer in using a slow cooker for fruit butters, because of its ability to produce low, even heat for extended periods of time. (Keep in mind that newer slow cookers cook hotter than the older ones. Because of this, the recipes that call for slow cookers offer a time range instead of a one-size-fits-all recommendation.)
You can also make fruit butters on the stovetop (when stove-topping it, I recommend one of those fine mesh splatter shields most commonly used for frying) or even in the oven. In the following recipes, I will elaborate on each of these techniques. However, you should know that just because a recipe calls for the stovetop method doesn’t mean that you are wedded to the stovetop for that particular ingredient for all time. As you get more comfortable with the making of fruit butters, you’ll find the method that appeals to you most.
There’s one last thing to know about fruit butters. Because they have less sugar in them, they don’t have the same shelf life as jams. Sugar is a powerful preservative, so if a product has less of it, it won’t be able to hold off the ravages of time as well. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make fruit butters, it’s just important to remember that they should be eaten within six to eight months of going into the jar.