DIY Christmas Apple Cider

So this Christmas we thought it would be nice to have some apple cider around the house... unfortunately we can't just run to the store and buy one of those big plastic bottles, so I had to figure out  how to do it "old school style".

 I discovered that it is SUPER easy... but that there are not many online tutorials on how to do it (probably because they want you to buy it and it's so easily accessible in North America).  The one i used to make our apple cider was actually from a apple farm picking website. But it's not super 'user friendly' so i figured i'd post my version and modifications here. So here we go!

DIY Christmas Apple Cider

{makes approximately 1-2 litres)

You'll need:

• 7-10 apples (you'll want to go for the sweet varieties ~ fuji, yellow delicious, gala,  honeycrisp)
• water
• large pot
• cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves (optional)

Here's how:

1. wash all the apples in the sink with dish soap and thoroughly rinse
2. dry apples and use apple corer to slice apples
3. put sliced apples into large pot 
4. when all apples are in the pot cover apples with water (about 2-3 inches of water)
5. bring to a boil (with lid on)
6. lower heat (low flame or 2/3) 
7. add cinnamon & cloves and cook until apples are soft (15-25 min)
8. turn off burner and allow mixture to come down to room temperature (1-2 hrs) {at this point i mashed the apples using a potato masher}
9. store overnight in fridge and then decant (a fancy way for saying pour off the liquid and leave the sediment in the pot/throw out), or strain mixture through a mesh metal sieve {if you would rather drink the cider right away you could try straining right away, although my guess is the flavour sets in more overnight}
10. taste and test the flavour - if it isn't sweet enough you can add sugar (i used just a little brown sugar) or cinnamon, nutmeg or cloves to preferred taste.
11. reheat (either in pot or microwave) and enjoy!

 

 Who would have thought it was SO easy, SO healthy and SO affordable! After making a batch i decided that while apples are in season (only 2.59PLN = $0.84) i'm going to make this for my toddler to drink instead of the store bought juices that have 'who knows how much' added sugar. I think it should keep in the fridge about one week.

*if you want to make more just add 2-3 times the amount of apples & water!