The Pioneer Woman's Mulled Apple Cider Recipe (2024)
A delicious hot drink for the holidays: The Pioneer Woman’s Mulled Apple Cider Recipe. Perfect for the fall, holidays, or a cozy treat on a cold day.
I always love it when I’m done with Christmas shopping, and I get to sit down and enjoy a cup ofmulled apple cider.This The Pioneer Woman’s Mulled Apple Cider Recipe is amazing, and it’s so yummy to serve to company!
Table of Contents
Mulled Apple Cider Recipe
If you haven’t watched Ree’s cooking show on Food Network, or visited her blog, The Pioneer Woman, then you are missing out. (And a few years ago, that’s me in the white blouse riding Ree’s horse (LB) at her ranch. Check out the Chocka Mocka Locka Wocka post.)
Packed with everything delicious, Ree’s holiday cookbook covers 12 holidays!
I’m a picture-gal–I love pictures that tell a story, the whole story, and Ree’s photography is perfect for making me smile, especially when I see Charlie always posing for the camera!
Here’s a little excerpt from Ree, summing up what the book is about. Quite honestly, it’s more than a holiday book, because most recipes could be made almost any day of the week.
There’s nothing more delicious than a holiday.
Oh, is it ever true. Whether it’s the anticipation of Christmastime or the ghoulish glee of Halloween, if I see a holiday on the horizon, I simply can’t contain my excitement. There’s just something about the traditions, the family togetherness, the resurfacing of childhood memories . . . the making of new ones. Holidays are wonderful, special, and fun . . . and they always make me happy.
And one more thing: They make me want to cook! –Ree
Bringing people together
Who doesn’t get excited for the holidays and cooking?! Bringing people together in a cozy home, and making them happy with a home-cooked meal is my favorite!
Pour the apple cider into a large pot over medium-high heat.
Dice up the apples and toss them into the cider.
Peel the rind off the orange in large pieces and toss them in.
Add the allspice berries, the cinnamon sticks, and the cranberries.
Add the sugar and stir it around to dissolve.
Bring the mixture to a low boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Add the brandy if using, then simmer for another 10-15 minutes. Serve warm.
Here's the difference between apple cider and apple juice: Apple cider is just unfiltered apple juice that can be served hot or cold. Mulled apple cider is unfiltered apple juice that's been heated and flavored with mulling spices such as cinnamon, cloves, and allspice; and fruits like oranges, lemons, and apples.
The process for making apple cider and spiced apple cider is the same. The main difference is that spiced apple cider is, well, spiced! It typically has been infused with flavors of different warm spices (like cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg) versus regular apple cider which gets its flavor solely from the apples.
Combine your spirit of choice—though bourbon and rum work exceptionally well—with your cider (hot or cold!). Garnish with a cinnamon stick and an apple slice to really make it feel like autumn.
How many apples does it take to make a gallon of cider? - It will take just a little over a peck or 36-42 medium apples to make just one gallon of cider.
It takes 15 pounds of apples to produce a gallon of cider. Using a blend of apple varieties will give your cider a more complex flavor that is not overly sweet or tart. Tart apples like the Granny Smith, Pink Lady or Braeburn mixed with sweeter varieties like Fuji or Jonagold will yield a well-balanced beverage.
We recommend only adding fruit peel later on into the the mulling process as it can give a bitter after taste if left in for too long. Try adding your fruit slices for the last 5 minutes before serving.
Is mulled apple cider good for you? Mulled apple cider contains nutrients found in apples, including antioxidants like polyphenols. Antioxidants help protect against oxidative stress to keep cells healthy. Apples are also rich in quercetin, pectin, vitamin C, vitamin E and fiber.
Traditionally cider is spiked with dark spirits, like the rum and bourbon in the recipes above. But what if you want something a little lighter? Vodka can do the trick. Since it doesn't contribute much in the way of flavor, we add fresh ginger for its distinctive, peppery-sweet flavor.
The apple varieties that we generally find in stores and that are used for the making of modern-style ciders include McIntosh, Golden and Red Delicious, Goldrush, Honeycrisp, Cortland, Idared, Jonagold, Granny Smith, Gala, and Fuji.
Yes, just in small quantities since the cider has sugar (meaning 6 oz. max). Don't add any more sugar (including cinnamon which often has sugar mixed with it).
Cider contains more of apples' polyphenol compounds than clear commercial apple juice. Fresh cider from cider apples may contain from two to four times the amount of these healthful compounds compared to clear commercial apple juice because of the apple varieties used and the extra processing to make clear juice.
Apple Cider may not taste as good after it begins to “turn”. It will become darker in color and start to froth. When those things start to occur, it just means the cider is undergoing fermentation. It will taste more sour like vinegar, but it's by no means harmful.
There are a few reasons your cider may be bitter: You didn't use enough sweetener. To fix this, taste a spoonful of cider, and if it isn't sweet enough, simply stir in more of your prefered sweetener.
Acid blend is also added at between 1/4 tsp – 1/2 tsp per gallon. Note: The 1/4 tsp – 1/2 tsp per gallon quantity is from all acid sources. Don't add 1/2 tsp of malic acid and 1/2 tsp of acid blend to a gallon.
Add yeast and nutrients: Add ½ teaspoon (~2 grams) of yeast nutrient (Fermaid K) per gallon of juice. Carefully swirl to mix. Add ¼ teaspoon (~1 gram) dry yeast per gallon of juice by sprinkling across the surface of the juice.
Traditional choices are orange or lemon peels, cinnamon sticks, cloves, allspice berries, and star anise. Per gallon of cider, I recommend using 4 cinnamon sticks and 1 teaspoon each of your chosen spices.
About 3 tbsp of freshly grated ginger (or thinly sliced). Get your juice ready. Make sure your apple juice is at room temperature, and then pour it into your clean gallon jug or fermentation container, if you're not making your cider directly in the juice bottle. Add your grated ginger.
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