Here is how I did it:
- Peeled, cored, sliced, and pulverized in the food processor 8 pounds of pears.
- Chopped 9 cups of strawberries.
- Cooked the pears and strawberries in my Crockpot w 2 1/2 cups of water on high for 4 hours, stirring once.
- Strained out the large bits of strawberries. (just most of them, didn't worry too much about getting them all out)
- Measured how many cups of cooked fruit were left (I had 10 cups).
- Measured and stirred in 1 1/2 cups of sugar for every 2 cups of fruit. (7 1/2 cups for me)
- Cooked in Crockpot on Low for 10 hours (stirring occasionally) (it probably didn't need to cook that long, but I went to bed.)
- Stir the mixture really really well and put a small amount on a plate to make sure it stays together. This is how you know it is done.
- Carefully fill canning jars and seal, use your favorite canning method (I used a water bath), label and enjoy!
I ended up with about 10 cups of fruit butter. We already tested it out on whole wheat English muffins, sorry no pictures - we ate them up too fast!
Two websites I found helpful:
Sweet Preservation
Canning Basics
The original recipe for the butter came from the book Clearly Delicious compliments of my local library.
