It’s official. Fall is my new favorite season. Have we talked about this? Because if there were any doubts before, they’re gone. I’m all for fall. I just can’t help it!
The other day I went apple picking as kind of a therapeutic release from all that’s been swirling around in my head lately… Like life, pending parenthood, America… the usual. All that to say, it was pretty overwhelming so I decided to shut the laptop down for a bit and get out the house. Driving is always a go-to for me when I need to clear my head, especially around here where there are so many beautiful, scenic roads. I’m telling you, I never thought I’d appreciate living in farm country, but the views around here truly are stunning.
Yes, I did completely stop the car to snap these! Promise!
So Baby and I drove all the way around everywhere and decided to stop by our favorite orchard before heading home (for some reason I thought this was a better idea than going the opposite way to get ice cream… Strange, but true). I was happy for the silence, the overcast sky and the perfect breeze. We picked apples til I felt better, which proved to be quite timely since a few more and I wouldn’t have been able to carry the bucket!
So now that we have about 29875023 apples in the fridge, what to do with them? Let me count the ways! I decided to try a few new recipes, and this one was first up! Since I’ve never in my life made apple cider before (though that’s changing now!) I took some cues from the always-inspiring Ali over at Gimme Some Oven and scaled her recipe down a bit just to test it out (by that I mean I scaled down the apples and water… the spices are pretty much the same haha!). Let me say, I highly recommend doubling this recipe if you can find a pot big enough! It’ll be so perfect for those cool fall nights headed our way. Definitely a fireside staple in my book!
I should also mention that this is for sure a spiced apple cider. We go pretty hard with things like cinnamon and nutmeg around here… and since I’m totally in fall spirit now, I had to break out the roasted ginger and cloves and allspice while I was at it. Roasted ginger? Yes. Absolutely yes. It’s a warmer, toastier, cozier version of ground ginger. And you need it. So much better!
This recipe is actually super easy because, well, you just throw everything into a pot and stir every so often. No kidding. No peeling, coring, seeding, nada. Just chop and go. And the spices you leave whole, so no grating or grinding. Honestly the hardest part is straining it, which isn’t hard at all. Literally grab the biggest strainer you have (but not a colander… too far) and put it over a bowl, giant measuring cup, pitcher, whatever. Dump everything out, use your spoon to press out all the liquid you can get, and you’re done.
Did I mention this makes your house smell absolutely heavenly?! Yes, I’m convinced there will be cinnamon and nutmeg in Heaven. God knows what He’s doing after all. 😉
- 3 large Granny Smith apples
- 3 large Fuji apples
- 1 tsp roasted ground ginger
- ½ tsp ground cloves
- 1 tsp ground allspice
- 1 whole nutmeg
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- 1 navel orange
- 8-10 cups water*
- Slice the apples and orange into quarters and place into a large stock pot (I used my 6-quart cast iron stock pot). Add to the pot the remaining ingredients and top with 8 cups of water. Stir, then bring the pot to a slow boil over high heat, stirring occasionally. Once it's boiling, reduce the heat and allow the cider to simmer over medium-low (think 4/10) for 2 hours, stirring every 20-30 minutes or so.
- After the 2-hour mark, mash fruit using a spoon and stir. Add water and adjust sugar/spices as needed. Reduce the heat to low and simmer another 30 minutes. Strain the cider using a fine mesh strainer and serve hot.
- Cool to room temperature and transfer into a glass jar or another heat-proof, airtight container before storing in the refrigerator. This recipe will fit into a quart-size mason jar.