Apple butter is essentially an improved spreadable apple pie filling. Despite the lengthy cooking period, the recipe is really simple and requires little hand labor. On a cheese platter, combine it with some sharp Cheddar, or spread it on some cheddar biscuits.
| Prep Time: | 20 mins |
| Total Time: | 20 mins |
| Servings: | 12 |
| Yield: | 12 servings |
Ingredients
- 1 cup white sugar, or to taste
- 4 lemons, juiced
- 4 limes, juiced
- 4 oranges, juiced
- 3 quarts cold water
- 1 lime, sliced into rounds
- 12 cups ice cubes
Instructions
- Pour the sugar, lemon juice, lime juice, and orange juice into a gallon-sized container; stir until the sugar has dissolved. Serve over ice with a slice of lime if desired.
Reviews
I’ve made this recipe before, and it is absolutely wonderful!! I found this years ago in a home cooking magazine. My aunt loved it so much, that I sent her the recipe.
I used this basic idea to make one of the most refreshing summer drinks I’ve ever tasted. Instead of just sugar, I made a simple syrup by melting a cup of sugar and a cup of water together. Then I adjusted the fruit to 4 lemons, 3 limes, and 2 large navel oranges. Once the syrup was added to the juice, I added additional cups of water (about 4 total) until I got the balance of tart to sweet that the family liked. I made this several times over the weekend of the 4th!!
Just a few helpful secrets: 1) Serve on a hot summer day when you need something refreshing. I think the refreshing factor works best when you need to be refreshed. 2) Adjust amounts to suit your tastes. I used 5 limes, 5 lemons, 3 oranges (because they were so large) and approximately 1 1/2 c. sugar. (It needed more sugar, though.) I also used only 4 c. water. 3) Use seedless fruit if possible. That way you don’t have to fish the seeds out of your juice! 🙂
Of course this is going to be refreshing and delicious…IF the proportions of juice, water and sugar are right. Even though it was easy enough to fix, that unfortunately was not the case with this recipe. Too watery. And not sweet enough.
Overall I did not find this to be anything special. The taste was just ok. Maybe my citrus wasn’t flavorful enough. it is the winter season here so maybe that is making a difference. Don’t know if I would go out of my way to make this again.
Tasted good. I may put more ice in it next time because I like slushes…
A light, fresh tasting lemonade. I followed the recipe as stated. However, I felt the limes overpowered it. It did not have a sweet or tart taste. Next time I will only use 2 limes, plus add 2 more lemons. Instead of juicing all of the fruit, I sliced them in 1/4″ – 1/2″ slices and removed the seed pieces. I placed the sliced fruit in a bowl and added the sugar. I mashed slightly with a potato masher and let sit for 1 hour before adding the water and ice. This makes for a nicer presentation.