Slow Cooker Apple Pie Filling Recipe

It's apple harvest season in New England. Around here, we can never get enough sweet, juicy, crisp apples.These days, you can buy apples year round, but they're never quite as good as harvest-fresh local apples.

It's not just about the great taste, though. We're pretty committed to cutting back on the number of miles our groceries travel before they reach us, and that means buying local produce as much as possible. Because of that commitment, we try really, really hard to avoid buying fresh fruit out of season - so bye-bye January apples and hello preserving as much of that fresh apple goodness as possible.

This recipe may be one of the easiest -and most delicious - apple pie filling recipes ever. The slow cooking preserves the apple flavor and structure so you get the most firm, sweet, apple-y apples ever.

Slow Cooker Apple Pie Filling

Deb Powers
A little bit of sugar goes a long way in this sweet, slow cooker apple pie filling recipe. The slow cooker uses far less energy than most other methods and preserves the sweetness and flavor of the apple slices. Perfect for canning so you've got apples all winter long for crumbles, pies, mixing into oatmeal or yogurt or spooning over ice cream.

Ingredients

• 10 to 12 pie apples, or enough to yield 8 cups sliced apples
• 2 tbsp. brown sugar
• 1 tbsp. raw sugar
• 1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp. allspice
• 1/2 tsp. ground cloves

Directions

1. Peel, core and slice the apples in wedges.
2. In a large bowl, toss the sliced apples with the sugar and spices, making sure to coat all the slices well.
3. Dump the apples into the slow cooker, scraping out all of the collected juice and sugar.
4. Set the slow cooker to low and leave it to cook for 6 to 10 hours, until the apples are soft but still firm.
5. Ladle the apple pie filling into clean, sterilized jars, cover and let cool to room temperature before refrigerating. Will keep for 2 to 3 weeks refrigerated.
6. For longer storage, process the covered jars in a hot water bath for 25 minutes (USDA recommended safe canning time).

Yield: 2 qt. apple pie filling
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 6 to 10 hours
Total Time: 6 hrs 20 mins to 10 hrs 2 mins
Learn more about canning apples at the University of Minnesota Extension