Shortcut Spiced Apple Butter
With an overstock of applesauce in my fridge one day (don’t ask), it hit me that applesauce was basically one step away from apple butter, that delectable spread I buy in pricey jars and slather on my morning toast or dollop onto my oatmeal daily. I experimented with tossing the applesauce, along with some sugar and spices, in the air fryer to see if it would blow up or reduce down to a perfect apple butter texture. To my relief, the latter happened, and now I can’t stop buying applesauce just to make this apple butter, in half the time it would take to make on the stove and without all the nervous stirring and dodging of napalm-like apple splatters. The mixture will look over-caramelized in some spots and a little loose when it first comes out of the air fryer, but once you stir it together and let it cool completely in the fridge, it miraculously sets up into the perfect condiment.
Ingredients
- Cooking spray
- 2 cups store-bought unsweetened applesauce
- ⅔ cup packed light brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon ground allspice
Instructions
- Spray a 7-inch round cake or pizza pan insert, metal cake pan, or foil pan with cooking spray.
- Whisk together all the ingredients in a bowl until smooth, then pour into the greased pan.
- Set the pan in the air fryer and cook at 340°F until the apple mixture is caramelized, reduced to a thick puree, and fragrant, about 1 hour.
- Remove the pan from the air fryer, stir to combine the caramelized bits at the edge with the rest, then let cool completely to thicken.
- Scrape the apple butter into a jar and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.