More from My Clean Kitchen blogger Sara Christopherson at www.mycleankitchen.com.
I’ve been trying to figure out what to bring to my in-laws for Thanksgiving. Jessica and I discussed a couple of options and came to the Pumpkin Butter idea! It worked out perfectly because the local Farm Market had these amazing Heirloom Pumpkins that were grown locally. The seeds originated in Italy many many years ago. I assume they were brought over by an immigrant. They look nothing like pumpkins but the inside is a beautiful, dark orange and made a beautiful Pumpkin Butter. I made this pumpkin butter with the heirloom pumpkin, but it could also be made with 3-4 sugar pumpkins. You just need about 4 cups of pumpkin puree. Click here for my pumpkin puree recipe.
This was the first time I’ve tried making any kind of fruit butter. It was so easy and is so delicious. I told Jessica that I was thinking of putting it on everything I eat going forward. I’m a big fan. My husband loves apple butter so I think I’ll tackle that one next. I plan to make this for my in-laws and put it into a pretty jar with a ribbon or something. Although, I”m a better cook than I am a crafter, so we’ll see how that goes. I’ll let you know.
After I roasted the pumpkin, I put the pumpkin meat in the food processor to make the puree. Then I added it to the medium saucepan and then added the spices, sucanat (I actually used Palm Sugar, but sometimes that’s hard to find, sucanat would work too), the apple cider, and maple syrup. While everything was in the pot and before I turned on the heat, I used the stick blender (immersion blender) to blend it all together until combined. Then I turned the heat on around medium high. Once the mixture started to bubble, I turned it down to low and let it sit on the heat for about 20 minutes. I used a whisk to occasionally stir it. NOTE: This will splatter a little and is as hot as lava! It will burn you. Use a splatter guard or keep the lid partially on to prevent the splatter. I can tell you from experience as I have been rubbing an aloe plant on my hand since making this earlier today. Once the pumpkin butter is at the thickness you want, turn off the heat and add the lemon juice and vanilla extract. Take it off the store and allow to cool. It should be chilled in the refrigerator. I’d say it should last about a week as the lemon juice should help preserve it a little.
Local Ingredients: Heirloom Pumpkin purchased at the Stuarts Draft Farm Market. Fresh Apple Cider that came in my relay food local food weekly grocery box.
Kitchen Gadget: Immersion Blender, sometimes called a stick or hand blender is such a handy tool. We use it a lot, especially when making soups. Here is a link to the one we use. Cuisinart CSB-75BC Smart Stick 2-Speed Immersion Hand Blender, Brushed Chrome.
Homemade Pumpkin Butter
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Yield: About 4 Cups
Ingredients
4 cups Homemade Pumpkin Puree (Click here for the recipe
1/4 cup Fresh Apple Cider
1 cup Coconut Palm Sugar or Sucanat
1 tablespoon Maple Syrup
1 tablespoon Ground Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Freshly Ground Nutmeg (about 15 passes on a microplane)
1/2 teaspoon Ground Clove
1 teaspoon Fresh Lemon Juice
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Pinch of Sea Salt
Instructions
Place the pumpkin puree, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, maple syrup, palm sugar, and apple cider into a cool medium saucepan.
Use an immersion blender to combine until there are no clumps and everything is well mixed.
Turn on heat to medium high.
Allow pumpkin mixture to begin to boil/bubble. Then turn the heat down. Becareful of splatters, they can be hot. Use a splatter guard if you have one.
Use a whisk to stir occasionally until pumpkin butter is at desired thickness. About 20 minutes.
Add lemon juice and vanilla extract, stir to combine.
Allow mixture to cool before putting into an airtight container to chill in the refrigerator.
Serve chilled.
Notes
Spread on toast, pancakes, bagels or mix into yogurt or homemade ice cream.
This makes a great hostess gift for Thanksgiving.
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