Now that temps have finally dropped on the Gulf Coast (~28 F this morning), it’s time for hot drinks.
My aunt Amanda brought a wonderful cider to our Christmas, and I fooled with the recipe some more. Here’s my version, with some cost data too:
Greet’s Mulled
Cider
Total cost (outside of household spices) ~$4/per batch for the cheap version, and $8/per batch for the real cider + liquid honey version. Prep: 5 min.
4 cups
water
2 tsp
ground allspice (you can substitute nutmeg if you’ve just used all the allspice on gingerbread)
1
cinnamon stick (3 inches)
Dash
ground cloves, or 10 whole cloves
Cheaper version: 2 reconstituted cans (12
oz) of apple juice
Fancy version: 1 gallon
apple cider
1 can (12
oz) frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
¾ cup
orange juice
1/3 cup
honey powder or liquid honey
In a
large kettle, combine the water, allspice, cinnamon stick and cloves. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 30
minutes.
Add the
remaining ingredients. Return just to a
boil, then reduce heat. Serve warm. Yield: 18 servings (4 ½ quarts, or slightly more with the cheap version).
This keeps well on the stove on low all day, or transfer to a slow cooker.
It occurs to me, that this is a 30d north latitude cider. I’m going to get a southern cultivar apple tree next year (and learn palliarding!) and I already have the lemons. An orange tree is on order. I wonder what cloves grow on…