Fruit Butter Recipe

Written by on in Breakfast, Recipes, Snacks

I hesitate to say that there’s a drawback to getting into making sourdough bread…but there is. Don’t get me wrong – the many benefits far outweigh the negative, and it may be a stretch to even call it a negative when push comes to shove. But, this one thing has been weighing on me:

What do we put on the bread??!!

Fortunately, Summer is coming and that means fruit!

And fruit is my jam. We get to make cobblers, jazz up our yogurts, make colorful Dutch babies, and make preserves or jams or, better yet, fruit butters.

A co-worker brought in some freshly cut rhubarb because they have a huge plant in their yard. So, because of my huge bread conundrum, I immediately thought of rhubarb jam!

Here’s the thing…I love fruit jams and preserves, but I don’t love the work and I don’t love many of the ingredients. Most jamming methods call for way too much sugar and added agents, require you to have what feels like a cellar full of canning equipment, and it’s pretty intensive.

Making fruit butter is not near as intensive and it can be just as tasty and can be made with a blender or food processor and a sauce pot.  Plus, compared to many methods, it is way healthier for you – much less added refined sugars and no chemically rendered pectin.  Not to mention you can take just about any fruit and make a “butter” out of it!

In this case, I’m using Rhubarb, but really any fruit can be used.  There are plenty of standards like strawberry, peach, plum, blackberry, and more – I’ll use those too, but I’m not passing up on the tangy sweetness of rhubarb butter!

Fruit Butter Jam

  • Servings: 16-20
  • Difficulty: easy
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Using the pectin from apples makes this jam technique a breeze!

While I’m using rhubarb for this recipe, you can use just about any fresh fruit and have similar results.  You’ll want about 2-3 cups of whatever fruit or fruit combination to the one apple in the recipe.

Ingredients

  • 3-4 Large stalks of Rhubarb, cut into 1 inch chunks*
  • 1 Apple, cored and cubed
  • 1/2 Cup Pure Honey (preferably local!)
  • 1 teaspoon of lemon juice (helps form a gel, but not as necessary if using acidic fruits)

*You can substitute any fruit or a combination of fruits.  I recommend trying berries and stone fruits to start and branching out from there. Or, take what is freshly available to you from your garden, farmer’s market, or any other local source, and use that!  Just make sure to cut into manageable chunks before pureeing. Some fruits may need to be de-seeded or peeled, or not – completely up to your preference!

Directions

  1. Add the apple cubes and fruit pieces to a food processor and puree.  Try to get it to look like smooth applesauce.
  2. Once desired consistency is achieved, pour into a sauce pan and add the honey and lemon juice.
  3. Bring to a boil, stirring consistently.
  4. Reduce heat and let simmer for 15-20 minutes, stirring every 3-4 minutes. The mix should eventually thicken and start to gelatinize, but you can gage the total time by your preferred consistency.
  5. Pour into a jar – or can if you want to – let cool and then refrigerate.
  6. Serve on biscuits, dutch babies, pancakes, or anywhere you would use jelly!