Mulled Apple Cider
Mulled apple cider is a warm fall drink, perfect for removing the chill from your bones! It’s an easy drink to make and yet, special enough to serve to company.
With holiday parties on the horizon, it’s time to plan for some terrific food and drinks, and mulled apple cider is clearly a winning choice.
Mulled Apple Cider
Our winters are chilly around here, and I sip on hot tea day in and day out to keep warm. Miss Izzy, our lab puppy, loves to sit on my feet and that, too, helps keep me toasty. When I had a group of nearly 50 of my volunteer friends over for a coffee, we had the requisite pot of coffee brewing, a teapot filled with piping hot water and a pot of fragrant and delicious mulled apple cider.
It look only minutes to prepare, but my friends went back for seconds and more. It was a huge hit!
What is Mulled Cider???
The word mulled is a British term for wine heated with sugar and spices, which was most often served around Christmas. It has expanded to mean more than just alcoholic beverages, but hot drinks like this cider enhanced with fruit and spices.
Tips for Making Mulled Apple Cider
This mulled apple cider recipe is totally customizable to your tastes.
- Leave out the cloves or star anise if that’s your preference.
- A couple of lemon slices (or peel) can be added in addition to the oranges, but make sure to taste for sweetness.
- If you’d rather add honey to sweeten instead of sugar, go for it.
- And for an adult gathering, feel free to pour in some rum!
- Serve it up with some shortbread cookies or scones for a special treat.
I hope you enjoy this hot toddy as much as my friends and I did. Whip up some mulled apple cider for your next fall or winter gathering!
A couple of things you may need to make this mulled apple cider:
Le Creuset Enameled Cast-Iron 7-1/4-Quart Round Dutch Oven
Wusthof Classic 6-inch Utility Knife
OXO Non-Slip Cutting Board
More Hot Beverage Recipes You’ll Love:
- Easy Peppermint Hot Chocolate
- Italian Hot Chocolate
- Unicorn Hot Chocolate from Love and Olive Oil
- Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate from Nutmeg Nanny
Add to Your Shopping List
- Kitchen staples: sugar
- Apple cider
- Cloves
- Star anise
- Cinnamon sticks
- Allspice
- Vanilla bean pod
- Naval orange
Love this recipe? Please consider rating it in the comments below. You can also follow me on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram.
Mulled Apple Cider
This jazzed up apple cider makes for a terrific autumn or winter drink.
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 16-32, depending on portion size 1x
- Category: Drinks
- Method: Simmering
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 gallon apple cider
- 2 cloves
- 2 star anise
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- A pinch of allspice
- 1 vanilla bean pod, split
- 1 naval orange, sliced
- 1/4 cup sugar, optional
Instructions
- Pour apple cider into large pot. Add spices, vanilla bean and orange slices. Heat to just a simmer and let cook on low to allow the flavors to meld for about 15-20 minutes. Taste and add sugar if desired.
- Serve hot.
what a great giveaway! love the cider
I bet it’s delicious!!
Perfect for a lazy Sunday!
xox
Absolutely love mulled cider, I’ve not had it with the orange but I can see how tasty they would make it. I can’t get warm this time of year either, particularly my feet.
I love the smell of mulled cider or wassail. I almost ’tis the season for these hot drinks!
Don’t you think this cider could be made in a crock pot by cranking it up to high heat after putting it all together. Love the addition of anise. It’s cold enough for this right now, thatr’s for sure.
Definitely! Then you wouldn’t need to worry about it at all!
Sounds like a nice hearty cider Liz, love the addition of vanilla:@)
Love this time of year and these delicious ciders!
Tasty cider. Tasty giveaway!
I have never cared for hot cider. Love my cider cold and my tea piping hot. 🙂
Thank you for the fabulous giveaway.
I love the scent and taste of Apple Cider n the Fall. Especially when more complex flavors are introduced…
This would smell amazing simmering on the stove.
I love mulled apple cider, it’s comforting and delicious. I like that yours has just a bit of sugar, where so many are loaded with it.
Lizzy,
I’m sure everyone loved your cider. It’s amazing that you cater to such big gatherings. We had quite a cold and snowy winter last year…compared to the normally cold winters we get. It started late but it seemed never ending. And, Izzy is adorable.
Annamaria
Awesome sharing, dear! I’m drinking apple cider every morning with honey 🙂
We drank this all last fall and winter. I ma so exited for the fall to come and drink it again!
★★★★★