A tasty new seasonal food (a pantry essential) arrived this week….real apple butter. It is made from an authentic recipe in Pennsylvania. I’ve been there to see the small-batch production and meet the family. The Baumans have been pressing fresh apple cider from local Pennsylvania apples since 1892. From the fresh cider they make apple butter. Cooking apples with cider until there’s little water left has been a part of our food culture in this country since colonial times. If you go to the supermarket you’ll find cheap approximations of real apple butter. Since it’s Fall we thought you deserved to taste the genuine article (the Baumans use 5 pounds of apples to produce one pound of apple butter). We also have jars of Plum Butter made in a similar style. The Baumans only make these fruit butters during the fall from local fruit following the yearly fall tradition of their region. For those who want to read the whole backstory follow this link. Oh and you don’t need to refrigerate apple butter….they’re so concentrated, leave them on the counter so that you’ll get the full flavor when you spread the fruit butter on your morning toast.