Pineapple Butter with Cardamom and Vanilla

Makes about 12 ounces. A 12 ounce Ball canning jar is ideal for storage, but this will be refrigerated anyway so you can use whatever you have. But if you have a canning jar, make sure the jar, lid and ring are clean.

1. Put the frozen pineapple, apple, lemon juice, vanilla extract, cardamom and water into a medium sized saucepan. With the lid on, bring the mixture to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat. Cook the mixture, stirring every couple of minutes with a wooden spoon (remember that pineapple is acidic so a metal spoon might alter this mixture’s flavor), until the fruit is completely softened. This will take about 30 minutes. If you are making this with fresh pineapple, your cooking time will vary so keep an eye on it! I happened to have a bag of frozen pineapple from Trader Joe’s, so that’s what I used.

2. Once mixture is cooked and soft, carefully add it into a food processor or blender and puree until it’s completely smooth.

3. Pour the purée back into into the pan and add the brown sugar and vanilla bean sugar. Of course, plain granulated sugar will work, should you not have vanilla bean sugar—but I might up your extract to 1 1/2 teaspoons if you do this. Cook over low heat, uncovered, and stir until the sugar dissolves.

4. Bring the mixture back to a gentle simmer and cook 8-10 minutes while stirring occasionally. You are looking for a nice and thick texture with no water left in the pan. Keep an eye on this process. It can easily burn from all the sugars.

5. Once mixture is thickened and water has evaporated, remove from the heat and carefully pour into your cleaned and dried glass jar with a tight fitting lid. A Ball canning jar is perfect. Fasten lid and allow to sit at room temperature or until you hear the “pop!” from the lid. This means the jar is sealed. This should take about 30-40 minutes on your counter.

Will store in the fridge for up to 3 weeks.

Enjoy at home or add a crafty label and give as a gift!