This
is a compound of apples and cider boiled together till of the consistence of
soft butter. Fill a very large kettle (MUST NOT be boiled in a brass or
bell-metal kettle) with cider, and boil it till reduced to one half the
original quantity. Then have ready some fine juicy apples, pared, cored, and
quartered; and put as many into the kettle as can be kept moist by the cider.
Stir it frequently, and when the apples are stewed quite soft, take them out
with a skimmer that has holes in it, and put them into a tub. Then add more
apples to the cider, and stew them soft in the same manner, stirring them
nearly all the time with a stick. Have at hand some more cider ready boiled, to
thin the apple butter in case you should find it too thick in the kettle.
If you make a large
quantity, it will take a day to stew the apples. At night leave them to cool in
the tubs, (which must be covered with cloths,) and finish next day by boiling
the apple and cider again till the consistence is that of soft marmalade, and
the color a very dark brown. Twenty minutes or half an hour before you finally
take it from the fire, add powdered cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg to your taste.
If the spice is boiled too long, it will lose its flavor. When it is cold, put
it into stone jars, and cover it closely. If it has been well made, and
sufficiently boiled, it will keep a year or more.