In this old-fashioned fruit butter recipe, a puree of fresh blueberries cooks down for at least 4 hours in the slow cooker. Sugar, lemon, cinnamon, and nutmeg join the berries in the last hour of cooking.

  • Yield: About 1 1/2 quarts
  • Difficulty: Easy
  • Total: 4 hrs 15 mins
  • Active: 15 mins

Ingredients (5)

  • 8 cups pureed fresh blueberries (about 3 dry quarts)
  • 2 cups sugar
  • Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Instructions

  1. Add the blueberries to the crock of a slow cooker, cover, and set to low.
  2. Check after 4 hours—the mixture should be a cooked-down puree. Give it more time as necessary, up to 4 hours more.
  3. About an hour before the butter is done, add the sugar, lemon zest and juice, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
  4. Ladle into sterilized jars and can according to the manufacturer’s instructions, or into an airtight container to store in the fridge.