Pumpkin Butter

After making pumpkin butter for years, I recently ran across some online articles touting its "unsafeness". I was surprised. Hmm, I've never had as problem personally but I guess you never know.Anyway apparently after canning, if you decide to do that instead of freezing, you should refrigerate your butter. Does anyone else do this? Comment and let me know your techniques. Are you a canner or a freezer?

Anyway, here is my post on how we can pumpkin butter. Just a note, pie pumpkins make better butter but larger varieties give you quantity although you lose some of the pumpkin flavor. I would suggest maybe using one of each for both quantity and great "pumpkiny" flavor.

First, you need a beauty like this one:

 

25 pounds = $5

Then its on  to cleaning out, slicing, peeling and cubing. (Preacher sure makes a great helper :)

NOTE: Weigles did not sponsor this post but their 32oz drinks are $.89 this summer so we picked up a cold soda while on the road ...ahhhh....

Add water and cook till mushy (yes,mushy is my technical term). If its too soupy then cook a little longer.

For a fine texture for your butter; puree it. Thank you Momma for my immersion blender! You are the best Momma in the entire world and I love you ! As you can tell from my previously expressed joy, an immersion blender works best :) but you can do it in a food processor but BE CAREFUL. At this point I also add my spices. I use sugar, pumpkin pie spice and individual amounts of cinnamon and nutmeg to suit our palates.I would add spices according to your own tastes. Some may like a sweeter or spicier butter.

Fill your previously prepared hot jars (you should have also boiled your lids). Leave about an inch of head space.

Water bathe for 40 minutes (quarts).I should have used my bigger pot but this worked fine.

I also did some jelly jars. Bathe for 30 minutes. Look how pretty!

Yummy!