Cook: Spiced Hot Apple Cider

As a pair of non drinkers it can sometimes be a little tough to find tasty drinks to enjoy the festive season. There are a few non alcoholic mulled wine lookalikes but these are invariably like drinking syrup so at this time of year we have to fend for ourselves a little and get inventive.

Now making our very own non-alcoholic wine seems like a bit of a serious undertaking even to me. But fear not there is quite the delicious alternative – spiced hot apple cider.It’s even good for you! OK that might be pushing it a little given the sugar content, but its Christmas so we don’t need to worry about these little details.

The last wonderful thing about this creation is its simplicity. One pot and about 5 minutes and you are done. The whole house will smell like the holidays too! Can you tell we are getting a wee bit excited about Christmas yet?

Spiced Hot Apple Cider (makes about 1 litre)

Ingredients

1 litre cloudy apple juice not the super processed stuff

2 cloves

1 cinnamon stick

4 allspice berries

1 whole star anise

1/4 cup soft brown sugar

1. Warm – Place all the ingredients into a heavy bottomed saucepan and place over a medium low heat, stirring thoroughly to dissolve the sugar. It’s very important you use whole spices and not ground ones or you will be left with gritty bits floating on the surface. Leave the pan to warm through with the  spices for 5 minutes or until it just beginning to steam, we don’t want to boil it at any point.

2. Serve – Ladle into your favorite festive mugs and enjoy on a cold winter’s evening.

How easy was that!