This autumn, make your own homemade spiced apple cider with this simple slow cooker recipe. Place the ingredients in the slow cooker early in the day or before bed. Meanwhile, wait for your home to fill with the wonderful smell of slow-cooked apples and spices. Serve this drink piping hot in a glass mug & garnish with fresh fruit and a cinnamon stick. Create a cozy autumn cocktail by adding a shot of spiced rum.

Many grocery stores sell apple cider packaged in plastic containers. Although recyclable plastic can often only be recycled once or twice into a new plastic product before it ends up in a landfill, forever.  Furthermore, most plastic lids are not recyclable and go directly to landfills. In conclusion, making your apple cider at home is a way to vote “no” on plastic juice containers. If you do purchase cider, consider buying it in glass instead of plastic.

Ingredients

3 Granny smith apples, 3 Fuji apples, 3 Honeycrisp apples quartered & cored
2 oranges quartered, skins on
2 pears quartered & cored
4 cinnamon sticks
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
4 whole cloves
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground allspice
10-12 cups water
sugar to taste

Instructions

1) Place all ingredients except sugar into a crockpot & stir, cover the pot & cook on low for 10-12 hours, stirring occasionally
2) Remove lid and turn off the heat, add sugar to taste and stir, let cider cool & then strain the mixtures over a large bowl using a metal sieve or metal strainer
3) Next, mash apples with a metal spatula or wooden spoon before straining
4) Pour cider into mason jars or a glass pitcher, reserve apple pulp for dessert recipes
5) Serve hot in a glass, ceramic or metal mug, garnish with fresh apple & orange slices, add a cinnamon stick straw

Tips:  Purchase extra fruit & cinnamon sticks to garnish homemade spiced apple cider for guests, save leftover apple pulp to make apple sauce or apple muffins, cider will last one week in the fridge & can be frozen

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