Apple Butter

With the coming of autumn, last week I was suddenly inspired to make apple butter. I used this recipe (recommended to me by my Mom), except that I used about a quarter of the amount of sugar called for. The apartment smelled heavenly while this stuff was in the slow cooker for two days. I was pretty pleased with how it turned out. Spread on a slice of a toast, it is really yummy. I was even more pleased, however, that my first attempt at canning was actually successful! I don't have any real canning supplies, but I was able to do it in my largest pot using a wet towel lining the bottom of the pan rather than a wire rack. I used tongs to precariously put the jars in the water and then lift them out ten minutes later. Filled to the absolute brim, my pot held just enough water to cover the jars by about an inch and a half. Believe it or not, this haphazard technique seems to have worked: