Pumpkin Butter
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Pumpkin, spice, and everything nice…this pumpkin butter is what fall dreams are made of.
Pumpkin butter is an autumn fruit spread (yes, pumpkin is a fruit!) made from canned pumpkin and other sweet and spicy ingredients, like apple cider, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. The mixture is simmered over low heat until the flavor is concentrated, about 25 minutes, and tastes like the richest, most delicious pumpkin pie filling you can imagine. Similar to apple butter, there is no actual dairy butter in pumpkin butter; the term butter refers only to its butter-like, soft consistency and its use as a spread. The recipe makes about 2 cups, or one 16-oz jar full, but it can easily be doubled or tripled if you’d like to make extra to give away as presents over the holidays.
“I had friends over for coffee so I cooked up a few Magnolia biscuits and served them with the pumpkin butter. It was a huge hit. Everyone wanted the recipe. I will be making more to give as gifts for Christmas!”
Ways To Use Pumpkin Butter
- Spread it on salty crackers
- Dollop it on waffles or pancakes with maple syrup
- Spread it on toast, biscuits, English muffins, or scones with cream cheese
- Mix it into Greek yogurt and top with granola
- Use it as a filling for crepes
- Whisk a few spoonfuls into egg/milk custard for French toast
- Spoon some into oatmeal
- Add it to vanilla milkshakes or smoothies
- Stir a spoonful into a latte
- Whip a few spoonfuls with softened butter to make whipped compound pumpkin butter (this is delicious on rolls, biscuits, or cornbread)
What You’ll Need To Make Pumpkin Butter
Step-by-Step Instructions
Add the pumpkin, apple cider (or juice), brown sugar, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and salt to a medium, heavy saucepan.
Stir to combine.
Bring to a boil over med-high heat (because the mixture is so thick, it will be more like an active sputter.) Reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered with the lid just slightly ajar, stirring occasionally so the mixture doesn’t stick to the bottom, until thickened, about 20 minutes.
Let cool completely.
Transfer to a jar and refrigerate until ready to serve. Enjoy!
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Pumpkin Butter
Pumpkin, spice, and everything nice…this pumpkin butter is what fall dreams are made of.
Ingredients
- 1 (15 oz) can 100% pure pumpkin
- ½ cup apple cider or apple juice
- ⅔ cup (packed) light brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- ⅛ teaspoon ground ginger
- Heaping ⅛ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Combine the pumpkin, apple cider (or juice), brown sugar, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and salt in a medium, heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil over med-high heat (because the mixture is so thick, it will be more like an active sputter). Reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered with the lid just slightly ajar, stirring occasionally so the pumpkin butter doesn't stick to the bottom, until thickened, about 20 minutes. Let cool completely, then transfer to a jar and refrigerate until ready to serve.
- Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: Pumpkin butter will keep in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks, or frozen for up to 3 months.
- Note: If doubling or tripling the recipe, the cook time will be a bit longer, about 30 minutes.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (32 servings)
- Serving size: 2 tablespoons
- Calories: 18
- Fat: 0 g
- Saturated fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 5 g
- Sugar: 4 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 0 g
- Sodium: 11 mg
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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I made this pumpkin butter last night. Super Easy. I did add a little nutmeg to the mix. I was wondering if you have tried Orange Juice instead of apple juice or a mix of orange juice and apple juice?
Hi Penny, I haven’t but I think it would be a nice tweak. LMK what you think if you try it!
So delicious! So easy! And so versatile!! Another winner!! Thanks Jen!
Great, foolproof recipe. Delicious even after leaving it on a low flame for an additional hour (thought I had turned it off, but no).
This is delicious pumpkin butter!!! I tripled the recipe, except for the brown sugar-only added 1 cup-because I use Trader Joe’s Spiced Cider which is on the sweet side. I also put it in my pressure cooker, High-8 minutes- then 10 minutes natural release. No burning just perfectly delicious pumpkin butter. Thank you for a superb condiment for my cheese boards, biscuits, oatmeal, and eating with spoon!
We don’t have whats on the picture. Can I just use biologic Apple cider or regular bottled Apple Juice or does the autumn harvest have a special taste?
And what would be nicer, cider or juice?
Hi Chantal, I’m not familiar with biologic apple cider. When I google it, it appears that it’s apple cider vinegar. Is that correct? If so, that wouldn’t work here. You definitely don’t need to use the brand of cider that I’m using, but I owuld recommend apple cider. Please LMK if you have any other questions. 🙂
Hi Jenn,
Is it possible to water bath can this recipe? If yes, what needs to be added & how long would it need to process? Estimated shelf life?
Thanks, Cherie
Hi Cherie, I didn’t develop this recipe for canning, so I can’t say for sure that it would be safe. Sorry!
Hi, there are no safe recipes to home can pumpkin puree (water bath or pressure can). There are some recipes for home canned pumpkin butter floating around on the internet but they are dangerous as pumpkin puree has consistently shown to be too dense to eliminate the presence of botulism in home canning. I comment this information every time I see people inquiring about home canning pumpkin puree/butter because I have seen MANY instances of people selling and gifting the unsafe product unknowingly. This recipe looks amazing and would be great in the freezer for longer storage!
This recipe is incredible!! I could sit here and eat it with a spoon. I made it with home made pumpkin puree instead of canned. The spices are spot on. Thanks
Since this needs to be refrigerated and I wanted to give as teacher gifts, would it be okay if it being refrigerated after I made it and then it was out of the fridge for the day it was being given, then re-refrigerated, would it still be okay to enjoy or would it have gone bad? Hope my question makes sense. As always, thank you for your amazing recipes.
Yes that’s perfectly fine — hope everyone enjoys!
I had never heard of Pumpkin Butter so I just had to try it. I am so glad I did! It is absolutely delicious! I had friends over for coffee so I cooked up a few Magnolia Biscuits and served them with the Pumpkin Butter. It was a huge hit. Everyone wanted the recipe. I will be making more to give as gifts for Christmas! Thank you Jenn!