Apple Peach Butter

I thought I’d made just about every kind of butter, the fruit kind, until I came across a peach butter on Susan’s blog, called The View from Great Island. I was utterly stupefied! Why had I never thought to make peach butter? I can only think that once it’s fall, I begin using apples, pears, and pumpkins in butters, and different combinations of them all, because fall is my favorite food season. But why not a peach butter in the summer months when peaches are perfectly ripe and delicious? So thank you, Susan! .

You’ve all read about my apple tree and how I have to fight the raccoons to get some apples. But this year I started early. I picked a large bag full, and I won’t stop making things with apples until they’re all gone! Or, until the raccoons get them all.

notice some crabapples in with the apples as well

So, inspired by the peach butter, but also with an overabundance of green apples, I decided to combine the two. I was pretty sure the butter would be more on the peachy side, because these apples don’t have much flavor.

To enhance flavors, I used two unique ingredients to butter making. One was peach liqueur, made by Stirrings. (Fabulous stuff, by the way.) And the other was some sparkling apple juice that was given to me years ago in a gift basket. The reason I’ve had it so long? It’s non-alcoholic. Nuff said.

To make a fruit butter, no recipe is needed. Just start with a lot of fruit of your choice, in this case, apples and peaches, coarsely chopped, and place in a stock pot. Make sure this pot has a well-fitting lid.

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I added about half of the 750 ml bottle of apple juice to the fruits.

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And then I added about 1/4 cup of the peach liqueur. To add a little brightness to the flavors, I squeezed a small lemon into the fruit mixture.

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Give things a stir, and turn on the heat under the pot to medium. You don’t want everything to boil over.

Also add some brown sugar. I don’t like my butters to be as sweet as jam, but this is completely your choice. I like using brown sugar over liquid sugars, like maple syrup, to minimize the liquid.

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You could also add a cinnamon stick or a little cinnamon at this point, but I wanted to taste the final product first and decide what to add, if anything, at that point.

Begin by bringing the liquid in the pot to a soft boil, then cover the pot with the lid, and turn down the heat to its lowest setting. This step is to cook the fruit completely.

After about 45 minutes, the fruit should be cooked.

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There will probably be a lot of liquid in the pot remaining, so leaving the lid off of the pot, begin reducing the liquid until little remains. Then let the fruit mixture cool completely.

Place a food mill over another pot large enough to hold the apple peach butter.

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Pour the fruit and all of the liquid into the food mill.
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Process the fruit.
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After you’re done, you’ll have something that looks like the first picture. Go ahead and stir the butter and the juices together.

Evaluate if you need to reduce the mixture. Mine was more like apple sauce, so I spent about 2 hours reducing the mixture over very low heat, stirring occasionally.

When it was the consistency of a butter, which is more like a spread, I let the mixture cool.

Have clean jars available. I used about 5 pounds of fruit, and ended up with exactly 32 ounces of apple peach butter.

Place the butter into the jars and seal. I froze mine, because they thaw perfectly. That way I can make a few different small-batch butters.

The way I love to eat a fruit butter is on hot toast, with butter, of course, melting away. Or sometimes paired with peanut or almond butter. I enjoy the fruit flavors, and the minimal sugar. It’s also good in yogurt!

verdict: Love it! I think the butter would not have had such good flavor if it weren’t for the good peaches, the peach liqueur, and the apple juice. Fortunately the peaches that I used were perfectly ripe. The color isn’t as pretty as it could be, probably because the green and orange didn’t mix really well. But it’s still good!

By Published On: September 11th, 201444 Comments on Apple Peach Butter

About the Author: Chef Mimi

As a self-taught home cook, with many years in the culinary profession, I am passionate about all things food-related. Especially eating!

44 Comments

  1. Melissa @ The Glen House September 11, 2014 at 10:06 AM - Reply

    Amazing! Never heard of fruit butters, normally we’d put butter on the toast and THEN the fruit jam. What a great idea, thanks for sharing.

  2. thesinglegourmetandtraveller September 11, 2014 at 10:09 AM - Reply

    I’ve never made a fruit butter but this sounds so delicious I should give it a try! What a lovely way to ‘preserve’ summer.

    • chef mimi September 11, 2014 at 3:04 PM - Reply

      Pumpkin and pear butters are especially good, to me.

  3. Amanda September 11, 2014 at 11:46 AM - Reply

    This looks so delicious. Well done!

  4. chefjulianna September 11, 2014 at 11:56 AM - Reply

    Oh wow! I just love apple butter, but now I must try your new combination! This sounds just heavenly and we happen to have a huge surplus of peaches these days!

    • chef mimi September 11, 2014 at 3:03 PM - Reply

      Try peach butter. That sounds even better to me!!!

  5. lapadia September 11, 2014 at 12:54 PM - Reply

    I love fruit butters and before winter sets in usually make some kind, usually apple, love your combination and all the photos!

    • chef mimi September 11, 2014 at 3:03 PM - Reply

      Thanks so much! I usually make a few, just for the different flavors. Even though I still have some in the freezer from previous years!

  6. Conor Bofin September 11, 2014 at 1:52 PM - Reply

    Excellent inventiveness Mimi. I would love some on a slice of toast right now.

  7. Our Growing Paynes September 11, 2014 at 3:04 PM - Reply

    Nice! I wouldn’t have thought peach and apple either but duh, sounds like the perfect pairing!

  8. Abbe Odenwalder September 11, 2014 at 4:25 PM - Reply

    Great recipe. We have so many apples this year I am begging raccoons, squirrels and rabbits to eat away. Well, not the rabbits. They eat everything. But seriously, I have so many bags of applesauce in my freezer I think I need to get pregnant again.

    • chef mimi September 12, 2014 at 3:35 PM - Reply

      Hahahahaha!!! That is too funny. The problem with getting pregnant is that you end up with another kid!!!

  9. ladyredspecs September 11, 2014 at 5:03 PM - Reply

    This is not a style of preserve you see in Australia. Looks good……

    • chef mimi September 12, 2014 at 3:35 PM - Reply

      Really? Interesting. I think I first heard about apple butter, myself.

  10. Susan September 11, 2014 at 11:38 PM - Reply

    This looks so delicious – I can’t wait to make it!

  11. chefceaser September 12, 2014 at 4:25 AM - Reply

    Reblogged this on Chef Ceaser.

  12. Choc Chip Uru September 12, 2014 at 5:40 AM - Reply

    Peach and apple butter sounds perfect, who even needs jam right? :D

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru

  13. wendy@chezchloe September 12, 2014 at 3:15 PM - Reply

    Great idea! And same for me- loads of apple butter – but no peach. And how about pear butter? I’ll put the peach butter on next year’s docket for the 20# of peaches and nectarines:)

    • chef mimi September 12, 2014 at 3:33 PM - Reply

      Pear butter is fabulous. I’ve made it and also mixed it up with apples and pumpkin. I just didn’t think about apricots or peaches. Maybe plum butter???

      • wendy@chezchloe September 12, 2014 at 3:36 PM

        oops – what’ this new ‘like’ on the comment?!
        yes- apple pear- that I can still do this year. And plum butter I love- but our plums weren’t very prolific this year. I’ll probably just do some drying. I want to leave work and go home and can now:)))

      • chef mimi September 12, 2014 at 3:51 PM

        Hahaha! I know the feeling!!!

  14. hotlyspiced September 12, 2014 at 5:17 PM - Reply

    Your apples look so good and I’m so glad you were able to pick so many ahead of the racoon invasion. We don’t have racoons here but we do have possums and they are also notorious for stealing from people’s gardens xx

    • chef mimi September 13, 2014 at 8:13 AM - Reply

      Interesting! We have possums as well, but have never caught them doing anything. Have you ever seen their feet up close? They look like pink flowers!

  15. Heather @ Sweet Precision September 13, 2014 at 6:33 AM - Reply

    How delicious! I never even thought of making my own fruit butter. I’m inspired now!

    • chef mimi September 13, 2014 at 8:12 AM - Reply

      Oh, you must! They’re so nice to have on hand – especially for the holidays!

  16. richardmcgary September 13, 2014 at 9:49 PM - Reply

    Intriguing, Mimi. I make peach butter every year with all my other peachy things. I have made tons of apple butter in the past and love it. I have made pear butter, too – also tremendous stuff. I have never considered combining peaches with apples but I don’t really know why not. Just never did. Very creative and I’m sure tasty. :)

    • chef mimi September 14, 2014 at 11:50 AM - Reply

      Well I know. Me neither! I think because I only make butters when the weather cools down. But next year I’m going to make every kind of butter possible. Apricot, plum, peach… It’s just so much better than jam.

  17. dedy oktavianus pardede September 13, 2014 at 11:27 PM - Reply

    great idea, i guess this must be delicious as a glaze and stuffing for chicken too…

  18. Francesca (@LaCucinaPovera) September 15, 2014 at 11:22 AM - Reply

    Love that you added a little sparkling to this!

    • chef mimi September 15, 2014 at 12:06 PM - Reply

      I was so worried the apples lacked flavor!

  19. saffronandhoney September 17, 2014 at 11:10 AM - Reply

    Oh my – I can just see how addictive this butter would be all year round!

    • chef mimi September 18, 2014 at 9:06 AM - Reply

      You’re right. It’s not really seasonal, because people eat toast year round!

  20. dianeskitchentable September 20, 2014 at 11:48 AM - Reply

    I always love your ideas and feel so inspired. I’ve never thought to make fruit butters bit it sounds too good to not try…do you remember where I put my food mill?

    • chef mimi September 21, 2014 at 7:23 AM - Reply

      Hahahahaha wish I could help. I finally put up three giant shelving units in my basement and store everything down there. Makes it easier to store the big stuff – if you have a basement…

      • dianeskitchentable September 21, 2014 at 8:33 PM

        Oh please, don’t even mention my basement right now…not until my daughter closes on their new condo and removes half the stuff down there. Then I can see about donating all of the things my husband dragged here from his late aunt’s house. And THEN maybe I will have room for some nice shelves!

  21. sakinah30 October 2, 2014 at 11:56 AM - Reply

    Reblogged this on Cappuccino.

  22. Chris Moo January 8, 2017 at 5:30 PM - Reply

    Do you have any measurements or weights for this recipe, please? I would love to try this myself as I still got several pounds of summer peaches in the freezer.

    • chef mimi January 9, 2017 at 8:29 AM - Reply

      Seriously no recipe is needed. Just cook a big pot of fruit with a little liquid to get things started cooking, some sugar, and a little lemon juice. Taste once the fruit breaks down to see if you want it sweeter. After all of the cooking, purée it all. It should be spreadable, not thin like a syrup.

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