Fruit butters are the ultimate summer treat ~ they turn a late season glut into the silkiest, most intensely flavored spread imaginable, and help stock the larder for so many cozy fall and winter recipes to come.
What is fruit butter?
Fruit butter is fresh fruit that has been cooked thoroughly, then pureed, and cooked a little further to reduce it to a smooth spread. Often it is put through a mesh strainer to refine it further. Fruit butter differs from most jams and jellies not only because the texture is much smoother, but because there is no pectin added, the thickening comes from slowly cooking off the moisture in the fruit. A true fruit butter has a unique silky mouth feel and intense fruit flavor. Fruit butters are perfect for cooks who don’t have much experience with jam or jelly making because it’s almost foolproof. Just cook, puree, and cook some more 🙂
Intensifying flavor by reducing, or cooking down, is a time honored culinary tradition and is the secret to so many great recipes. Fruit butter illustrates this technique in its purest form.
Of all the fruit preserves, fruit butter is my favorite. Luckily, it can be made with nearly any kind of fruit ~ everything from mangoes and persimmons to figs and cranberries. Here are some of the best fruit butter recipes to get you started…
Make a cocktail ~ Smooth fruit butter incorporates well into cocktails. This Apple Butter Old Fashioned from Half Baked Harvest sounds like the perfect fall drink.
Add it to a sandwich ~ A little apple or plum butter on a grilled cheese sandwich is a decadent twist on a classic.
Do something unexpected ~ The sweetness of fruit butters can make a great addition to savory recipes, too!
This compilation is wonderful, thank you. Since I have a pile of almost over ripe peaches just waiting for attention I chose the peach butter. I’m not so sure about the vanilla. How long should I water bath ½ pints of this Peach Butter?
That recipe is written as a refrigerator recipe, and so I’m not sure about canning it. You can freeze it for longer storage though. I’m hesitant to recommend canning instructions since I’m not absolutely sure. Here is a recipe specifically for canned peach butter ~ https://www.nwcherries.com/peachbutter
Making apple butter is a yearly tradition for me. One of my favorite things to do with it, besides spread it on toast or English muffins, is to use it with a pork tenderloin. I roast the pork, along with cut up sweet potatoes and, during the last few minutes of cooking, I slather on a layer of apple butter. The butter mingles with the pan juices and gives the sweet potatoes a delicious, cinnamon-y flavor kick. Your recipe photos are, as always, beautiful and I love it that your recipes are so in tune with the season!
Thank you so much Lynn, I try especially hard to be on target seasonally with these Sunday posts! And you can bet I’ll be trying your pork idea, tenderloin is my favorite cut.
Hi,
Do you have any ideas on how I could adopt these recipes to use some of the one billion lemons all over my back yard?!
Thank you very much
Wendy Widlus
Hey there ~ I'm Sue. I love to make delicious food, photograph it, and write about it, but mostly, I just love to EAT. Isn't that what it's all about? My recipes are creative, vibrant, and totally approachable no matter what your skill level. Let's grab a bite together!
You have solved my Christmas Gift Giving problems with your Fruit Butter Ideas. Thank you.
Love this round up of fruit butters! Need to try quite a few…
I love all the different recipes for your fruit butters. My friend has a lot of different pear trees and I can’t wait to make your recipe.
Pear butter’s one of my favorites, love it with vanilla bean <3
Now I need more fruit so I can make some of these beautiful butters! Terrific roundup Sue 😉
I’ve got to try that pumpkin butter and the banana. Great line-up Sue.
This compilation is wonderful, thank you. Since I have a pile of almost over ripe peaches just waiting for attention I chose the peach butter. I’m not so sure about the vanilla. How long should I water bath ½ pints of this Peach Butter?
That recipe is written as a refrigerator recipe, and so I’m not sure about canning it. You can freeze it for longer storage though. I’m hesitant to recommend canning instructions since I’m not absolutely sure. Here is a recipe specifically for canned peach butter ~ https://www.nwcherries.com/peachbutter
Making apple butter is a yearly tradition for me. One of my favorite things to do with it, besides spread it on toast or English muffins, is to use it with a pork tenderloin. I roast the pork, along with cut up sweet potatoes and, during the last few minutes of cooking, I slather on a layer of apple butter. The butter mingles with the pan juices and gives the sweet potatoes a delicious, cinnamon-y flavor kick. Your recipe photos are, as always, beautiful and I love it that your recipes are so in tune with the season!
Thank you so much Lynn, I try especially hard to be on target seasonally with these Sunday posts! And you can bet I’ll be trying your pork idea, tenderloin is my favorite cut.
Oh, Yum-OLA!!!!! Thanks so much for these ideas. I’ll be trying some soon.
I’m always looking for new words to describe delicious food Diana, so I’m going to have to borrow yum-ola 🙂
Hi,
Do you have any ideas on how I could adopt these recipes to use some of the one billion lemons all over my back yard?!
Thank you very much
Wendy Widlus
I would make lemon curd, Wendy! ~ Lemon Curd
Why are the recipes so hard to find?
Virginia, if you click on the recipe title name, it should open a new window with the recipe. At least that’s the way I do it.
Thanks Lynn!
Ok thanks so much I was clicking on the picture
Why am I not surprised? 🙂 Another beauty to share …
haha, have a tasty Sunday 🙂