Apple (and Pear) Butter

Up until yesterday, my husband had never tried or even heard of apple butter.  Or any kind of fruit butter for that matter.  Fortunately, I had about 10 apples and 5 pears in the freezer that I needed to put to good use.  Originally I made two batches of applesauce, one with about 5 roasted apples and the other with 5 apples and 5 pears that were just cooked down.  I stored both batches in the freezer and this was a perfect opportunity to try a new recipe and make room for the 3 frozen geese we bought this weekend.  I mixed these two sauces and created a naturally sweet, satisfying apple-pear butter that was worth the slaving over the stove.

Choose any combination of apples and pears that you like.  I used local Korean apples and Bartlett pears.  Roast the fruit in the oven and process to a smooth sauce (I left some nice big chunks in there) or cook down, adding water if necessary.  I love lots of cinnamon so I added both ground and sticks to the sauce.  Put sauce back in a heavy bottom pot and simmer on low heat until the water has cooked out.  Mine took about 2 hours.  As the mixture gets more concentrated, the color will turn a deep brown and you'll need to stir more frequently to prevent burning.  That's it.  No sugar required and a whole spoonful was too sweet for my sugar-fiend of a husband.