This homemade slow cooker pumpkin butter recipe is too easy to make. It is so scrumptious, especially when served on top of a piece of toast, bagel, english muffin, waffle and so much more. You can even scoop a little on top of ice cream!
I will commonly make a large batch to give as a homemade holiday gift to my friends, family, neighbors and coworkers. Please make sure you see my storing instructions below!
Pumpkin butter and I go way back! I am the daughter of a Pennsylvania farm-boy, born in Amish-country, PA, where there were little roadside stands to buy local farm-made butters, jams and much more at every turn. Our Amish neighbors even used to drop off homemade potato chips at the bus stop. My grandparents still live on their farm in that area.
My family moved to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina when I was about 12 years old and when you live at the beach, the mountains are where you vacation! One of my favorite parts of our mountain vacations is stopping at little roadside stands to buy Appalachian pumpkin butter.
Pumpkin butter smeared on toast just warms my heart and provides a sense of home!
Ingredients for the Pumpkin Butter
Pumpkin Puree
I’m sure farmers all across the United States would scream, make homemade pumpkin puree for real pumpkin butter! But, I commonly go the easy route and use Libby’s canned grade A pumpkin puree.
Apple juice
I do use apple juice that is sweetened, so you’ll notice that my recipe calls for less sweetener than others. I like adding apple juice to provide the liquid base.
Lemon Juice
You’ve got to zest it up a little bit, and lemon juice also adds some additional acidity. I cut a fresh lemon in half and juice it. Juicing a half a lemon makes about 1-2 Tbsp of lemon juice depending on how big your lemon is. Make sure there are no seeds when adding to your butter! If you want, you can use bottled lemon juice instead.
Sweeten it up
I like sweet pumpkin butter, but cannot bring myself to include the amount of sugar some recipes call for. Sweet is good but I want the other flavors to shine as well. Remember that apple juice has sugar in it, too!
For sweetener for the butter, I use brown sugar and organic raw honey. I think the combination makes for a great taste and sweetens it without making it too sweet.
Flavorings and Seasonings
Cinnamon– You will need about 1 1/2 teaspoons for this recipe.
Pumpkin Pie Spice– Some recipes call for ginger, but pumpkin pie spice actually includes this among other ingredients. I really like using pumpkin pie spice for butter.
Nutmeg– You will use about 1/4 teaspoon for this recipe.
Ground Clove– Clove flavoring is strong. You will only need 1/4 teaspoon of cloves.
Salt– You’ll want to use a good dash of salt. I use sea salt.
How to Make the Easy Slow Cooker Pumpkin Butter
Add all of the ingredients to your crock pot and stir them together well.
Place the lid on the crock pot and turn it on low heat.
Cook in the crockpot, stirring occasionally to prevent from sticking to the sides.
That’s it! I told you it was easy!
Serve on top of toast, bagels, english muffins, ice cream, yogurt, Momma’s Perfectly Moist Pumpkin Bread, waffles, pancakes and well, really anything you may want delicious pumpkin butter smothered on top of!
Storing the Pumpkin Butter
Unfortunately, it is not recommended to can pumpkin butter at home, as pumpkin and its squash relatives are lower in acid and it can be hard to ensure you kill all the bacteria for proper canning. The only safe way to can pumpkin is in cubed form. No mashed or pureed pumpkin or squash product should be canned at home.
I do store my pumpkin butter in canning jars in the refrigerator. When kept in the refrigerator, the butter will last for about 3 weeks. For longer preservation, you can freeze the butter for up to 1 year. Pumpkin butter freezes really well! DO NOT store on a room temperature shelf.
You can freeze glass mason jars. Just make sure to give the butter enough room, as it will expand when frozen. Leave 1-2 inches at the top of the jar if you are planning to freeze.
If giving as a gift, please include storage instructions with your pumpkin butter!
Check out the National Center for Home Food Preservation recommendations for more information.
Easy Slow Cooker Pumpkin Butter
This homemade slow cooker pumpkin butter recipe is too easy to make. It is so scrumptious, especially when served on a piece of toast, bagel, english muffin, waffle and so much more. You can even scoop a little on top of ice cream!
Ingredients
- 2- 15 oz cans of pumpkin puree or about 4 cups of homemade pumpkin puree.
- 1/2 cup Brown sugar
- ¼ cup raw organic honey
- 3/4 cup Apple juice
- ½ of a lemon juiced (about 1-2 tablespoons depending on your lemon size)
- 1 ½ tsp Cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon Nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon Clove
- 1 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
- Generous dash of Sea Salt
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients into your crock pot.
- Place the lid on slow cooker and turn on low heat.
- Cook for about 3 hours, stirring occasionally.
- Serve on top of whatever your heart desires scrumptious pumpkin butter on!
Notes
Store in a canning jar in the refrigerator. In the refrigerator, pumpkin butter will last for about 3 weeks. You can also freeze pumpkin butter for up to 1 year.
Additional Recipes
Delicious Keto Pumpkin Cheese Cake
Easy “Real Butter” Apple Butter Recipe
Delicious Apple Waffles
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