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‘Tis the Season for Cider

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I’ll let you in on a little secret of mine: for 50 weeks of the year, I’m a bona fide tee-totaller. That’s right, outside of the two weeks around Christmas and New Year’s, I don’t imbibe in even a drop of alcohol. But during the holidays, I let myself go and I really enjoy all the wonderful ways of using wine, rum and other spirits during this festive season. And, being of Jamaican heritage, I have a wealth of wonderful recipes making liberal use of dark Jamaican rum! This one, for mulled cider, is my favourite. I got it off the internet a few years back, and in the ensuing seasons, I’ve tweaked it enough to feel I can call it mine now.

MULLED JAMAICAN CIDER

  • 2 litres of fresh, unfiltered apple cider (if you don’t live near a great apple farm, like I do, you can buy jugs of cider in most large supermarkets at this time of year). BE SURE YOU DON’T BUY ALCOHOLIC CIDER!
  • 2 oranges
  • 15-20 whole cloves
  • 4-6 cinnamon sticks
  • 15 allspice berries
  • 1 teaspoon of nutmeg
  • 7 pods of cardamom
  • 1/4 cup honey or brown sugar
  • 1 cup dark Jamaican rum

METHOD
Pour apple cider into a large saucepan or stockpot (3L), cover, turn the heat to medium-high. While cider is heating, peel away a few thick strips of orange rind from one orange (about half the orange). Slice the rest of the orange and the second orange (slice across the orange, with the stem end on the side, not the top or bottom), placing the slices aside for later. Place all the remaining ingredients (except the rum) into the saucepan with the cider. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 20 minutes on low heat.

Once the taste is to your liking, you’ll need to strain the cider through a sieve to remove the orange rind, pulp, cloves, and other spices. They do look pretty but they’re no fun to swallow! return the strained cider to the pot and keep warm on low heat. Add the rum at this point, and serve hot. Add a cinnamon stick and orange slice to each mug as garnish.
Yield: 10 cups.

Comments

  1. Bella says

    Lisa I must thank you for your amazing suggestions, and remedies. I made a delicious soup last night. Unfortunately I had a terrible mess at the bottom of my pot when I finished. I remember reading one of your posts about using cola to remove burnt messes on the bottom of pots. I must admit that I was a bit skeptical at first, but it actually worked! I can’t thank you enough!!

  2. Bella says

    Lisa I must thank you for your amazing suggestions, and remedies. I made a delicious soup last night. Unfortunately I had a terrible mess at the bottom of my pot when I finished. I remember reading one of your posts about using cola to remove burnt messes on the bottom of pots. I must admit that I was a bit skeptical at first, but it actually worked! I can’t thank you enough!!