Spiced Pumpkin Butter (Made With Fresh Pumpkin)

The USDA says not to can pumpkin and winter squash purees, it can be dangerous, as you do not know if it going to have the proper ph level to retard bacteria growth. So store in refrigerator or freezer. Recipe is from the Williams-Sonoma book “The Art of Preserving” by Rick Field, Lisa Atwood, and Rebecca Courchesne.

• Ready In: 1 hr 25 mins
• Yields: 6 1/2 pints

Ingredients

• 2  pumpkin (small-sized, about 4 pounds each)
• 2  tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 2  cups granulated sugar
• 1  cup  firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1 1⁄2 cups sweet apple cider
• 3 1⁄2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 3 1⁄2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cloves

Directions

1. Have ready, hot, sterilized jars and their lids.
2. Preheat the oven to 425°F
3. Cut each pumpkin in half. Scoop out and discard the seeds. Brush the pumpkin halves with the melted butter and place, cut side down, on a baking sheet. Bake until tender, 25-35 minutes, depending on the size of the pumpkin halves.
4. Using a spoon, scoop the flesh from the pumpkin halves and place in a bowl. Stir and mash the pumpkin until pureed. Measure out 5 cups of the pumpkin puree; reserve any remaining puree for another use.
5. In a large nonreactive saucepan, combine the pumpkin puree, sugars, cider, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Stir until blended. Bring just to a boil over medium high heat, stirring constantly. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, uncovered, stirring frequently and scraping down the sides of the pan, until the butter is thick and mounds on a spoon, about 30 minutes.
6. Ladle the hot butter into jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace. remove any air bubbles and adjust the headspace, if necessary. Wipe the rims clean and seal tightly with the lids.
7. The sealed jars can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 months. The butter can also be stored in airtight containers or heavy-duty resealable plastic bags in the freezer for up to 1 year.