Peel, core and slice the apples. Place the sliced apples in the bowl of water with lemon juice to prevent browning while you work.
In another bowl, mix together the sugar and spices.
Add the apple juice or water to the pot, and then remove the apple slices from the lemon water and place into the pot.
Sprinkle the sugar mixture all around the apple slices as evenly as possible. You don't need to stir it, but you can move things around to make sure it's all over the apples.
Pour the melted butter over the top of the sugar mixture and apples.
Close and lock the lid. Press Steam (or manual) and set the time for 1 minute. (If your unit doesn't go down to 1 minute, set it for the lowest time and then stop the cooking cycle after 1 minute has passed.)
Press Start/Stop. It will take about 10 minutes to heat up and pressurize. When the 1 minute cook time is done, press Start/Stop again and do a quick pressure release.
Open the lid and gently stir. The sauce will thicken some as it cools, but if you want it thicker, use a cornstarch slurry. Dissolve the corn starch in cold water and then add to the pot. Switch to Saute/Simmer and cook on low for just a minute or so.
Remove from pot immediately and place in refrigerator to cool. Filling will thicken more as it cools.
Recipe yields enough for the equivalent of 2 (20 oz) cans of pie filling. Use in pies, cobblers, cookies or just top with ice cream and eat with a spoon!
Notes
Stir gently after cooking to avoid breaking apart the apples. (If it all goes to mush, don't worry-you can just enjoy applesauce instead!) :) Store in glass canning jars in the refrigerator. Use within 2 weeks for best results.If you use apple juice or apple cider as the liquid, you can reduce the amount of sugar in the mixture to keep it from being too sweet. Tested in a 6 quart Crockpot Express (original model)