I’m not a fan of bland granola… I want it to be chunky and loaded with flavor — and this apple butter granola is perfect! I’m a granola snacker, which means I prefer to eat it as a sweet treat or dessert instead as a breakfast food with milk poured over top.
WATCH THE VIDEO TUTORIAL FOR HOW TO MAKE APPLE BUTTER GRANOLA HERE!
What is apple butter?
Apple butter is simply apples that are cooked long and slow into a thick sauce. Basically, you make apple sauce and then keep cooking it until it’s rich and thick. It’s a fantastic way to turn a lot of apples into something that doesn’t take up a lot of space, plus its delicious.
If you haven’t made your own yet, give it a try! Besides using it as a flavoring for granola, apple butter is great as a spread on buttery toast or english muffins. Fruit butters are one of my favorite things to make in the fall and enjoy all year.
Need a recipe for apple or pear butter?
My recipes are lower in sugar and delicious, allowing the flavors in the fruit to shine! Find them in my book, Freeze Fresh. They are included in the book because they freeze wonderfully! I love freezing apple butter because I can make the recipe however I want without having to worry that it’s too thick, or not acidic enough to be canned safely.
Notes about the recipe:
This granola uses apple OR pear butter, and homemade is best (naturally). My apple butter is lower in sugar, so if yours is from the store or is canned and uses more sugar than apple, you might need to adjust the recipe a bit. If your apple butter has a lot of vinegar added (not my favorite), I’m not sure that will taste good in this recipe.
Because this granola uses apple butter, which has some moisture in it, in needs to be baked low and slow, almost dehydrated, so that it becomes crunchy and shelf stable. This granola will keep in an air-tight container for weeks.
Pepitas and sliced almonds are my favorite add-ins for this recipe (seriously, don’t skip the peptias– they’re so good!) but you can substitute chopped walnuts and/or pecans for either. Walnuts instead of almonds are particularly lovely if making this recipe with pear butter.
Apple Butter Granola
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup apple butter
- 1/2 cup almond butter
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 1/4 cup old-fashioned oats
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds
- 1/2 cup pepita pumpkin seeds
- 1 cup dried apple pieces
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 250°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the apple butter, almond butter, maple syrup, butter, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt. Stir frequently until it is heated through and the butter is melted. If there are almond butter chunks, break them up.
- Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl stir together the oats, almonds, and pepitas. PLEASE NOTE: the dried apples are added after the granola is baked.
- Pour the warm apple butter mixture into the oat mixture and use a silicone spatula to fold it together until all the oats are coated. Spread the mixture in a thin even layer on the entire sheet of parchment paper, and bake for 20 minutes.
- Use a flat spatula to stir and flip the granola in sections, and then break it up into chunks about the size of a quarter.
- Bake for about 2 hours longer, stirring every 20 minutes, until the granola is starting to darken. It will become dry and crunchy once cooled.
- Once cooled, stir in the apple pieces and store in an air tight container.
How could we do the apple butter??? Do you have a recipie?
Hi Carol. My apple butter recipe is in my book, which you can find here: https://amzn.to/3l3IcqS
I haven’t shared it anywhere else, sorry. You can use whatever apple butter you have though.