Tasty Tuesday - Uncle Ted's Apple Butter

When Larry & I go on vacation one of our favorite things to do is find ‘mom & pop’ restaurants where we can experience the local fare. Last week in Michigan we hit a winner three times! We were in search of apples and found the best of both worlds when we stopped at Crane’s Pie Pantry & Restaurant AND Crane’s U-Pick Orchard. Lunch was homemade vegetable beef soup with a slice of fresh from the oven, made from scratch, bread! Served alongside that warm and yummy bread was the most delectable apple butter I think I have ever, ever tasted. (Made from scratch right there in their kitchen, of course!!) I’ve been thinking about that apple butter ever since. (BIG smile).

So I’m thinking that the next best thing would be to cook up a small batch of my Uncle Ted’s Apple Butter. I haven’t made it in years but with the weather turning cooler and the memory of Crane’s still making my mouth water, I plan to cook up a batch this weekend. (By the way, this would be a great recipe to get your kids to help with!)

Uncle Ted’s Apple Butter

Ingredients:

2 cups unsweetened applesauce         

¼ - ½ cup sugar (depends on your taste for sweet!)

1 tsp. cinnamon

¼ tsp. all spice

1/8 tsp. cloves

1/8 tsp. ginger

Put applesauce in a medium saucepan. Add spices and stir well to make sure they are blended. Bring to boil over medium high, reduce to medium. Allow to cook for 30 minutes, stirring often to prevent sticking.

Makes approximately 1 ½ cups apple butter.

Uncle Ted was my Dad’s younger brother. He lived on the New Jersey shore, yet he still managed to come back home to W. Va. for regular visits. Although I call this his apple butter, the original recipe actually came from his mother-in-law. Just goes to show you that cooking gets passed down through the generations no matter who the original ‘cooker’ was!

Happy Cooking,

Molly

Tasty Tuesday - Mom's Apple Crumble

Since I’ve been thinking about my Mom a lot this week, I thought it fitting to include one of her standard recipes. We always had apples around, either picked from the trees on our property or purchased from Kennedy’s Orchard on Bradshaw Mountain. I think Mom probably used whatever was on hand, not being particularly dependent on any one variety. I normally use Granny Smith if I’m craving that tart flavor. For those who prefer sweeter apples, Gala works well.


Mom’s Apple Crumble


Ingredients:

8-10 apples, peeled and sliced
1 cup self-rising flour
1 cup sugar
1 egg
½ stick butter (can use margarine if you prefer…I just LOVE the taste of butter!)
cinnamon


Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9 x 13 baking dish. Peel and slice apples and place in dish. In a medium mixing bowl combine flour and sugar, then add egg and mix with a fork until it is a crumbly texture. Pour over apples. Cut butter into small chunks and sprinkle over the top. Sprinkle liberally with cinnamon. Bake for 45 minutes.

This is delicious served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. However, I find it just as tasty the next day and have been known to eat it for breakfast!


Happy cooking,
Molly