Homemade No Sugar Apple Butter

We had lots of fun apple picking this weekend, if you are in the KC area then definitely don't miss Schweizer Orchards in St. Joseph.  A hike for sure, but well worth it, with a hayride, pumpkin patch, and lots of kids activities.  A super affordable afternoon and best of all, you can pick a bazillion apples for next to nothing!  We were a few weeks too late I think, but still managed to score pretty big.

And what is a family of three to do with a bazillion apples you ask?  Make homemade apple butter of course!

Homemade Apple Butter, No Sugar
12 apples, cored and sliced (I used assorted apples, honeycrisp mostly, some jonagold, some green)
3 cups filtered water
2 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons nutmeg

Dump your cored and sliced apples in your crockpot with your water, and sprinkle on your cinnamon and nutmeg.  Stir well to coat the apples in the spices evenly.  Then turn your crockpot on to LOW and let it cook overnight.  I actually let mine cook for 15 hours, and at the end, they were totally finished, no additional cooking necessary.  However, if you just do yours overnight, here is what you do in the morning:  Get out your stick blender and blend them all up well in the crockpot.  Then recover and cook on high for an hour or two until you get the consistency you are looking for.  I like mine really super dark brown, and this also concentrates the flavors so you get a deep, dark, rich, buttery maple flavor.  You absolutely do not need added sugar.  Try it out!  This made probably 20 ounces of apple butter.