Whole Fruit Apple Cider

vegan, gluten-free, grain-free, nut-free

Adapted from a recipe on Gimme Some Oven

Calling all cider fans! Simmering apple cider warms the whole home with the sweet and spicy scents of the holidays and gives me that cozy wintertime feel. I've always loved hot apple cider, but every time I attempted warming apple juice or cider on the stove with some orange peels and cinnamon sticks thrown in, I was disappointed with the result as it never seemed to have enough flavor. I discovered this recipe when I got a last minute idea to make hot apple cider for Christmas and didn't have a chance to run out to the store to buy any. I did have some fresh apples and oranges on hand, though, so I did a quick google search with hopes of making a truly from-scratch cider. The recipe I found gave me encouragement, but since it instructs you to strain out the fruit pulp, I thought I'd try blending it all up afterwards. It really worked, giving the finished cider a nice creaminess without being overly thick (hot smoothie? no, thanks.) This makes a whole pot of cider, so feel free to halve or quarter the recipe if you're not serving a whole party of people.

Serves: 6 / Active time: 10 minutes / Total time: 2+ hours

Ingredients:

• 10–12 medium apples (assorted types)*, quartered and cored
• 2 oranges, peeled and quartered 
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon**
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• optional extra spices:  1/2 teaspoon ground allspice, 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, and/or 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 16 cups water, more or less
• 1/2 cup sweetener (I recommend brown sugar or maple syrup)

Directions:

1. Combine your ingredients in a large stockpot.  Add the quartered apples, oranges, cinnamon, cloves and (optional) extra spices to a large stockpot.  Cover with water, leaving about an inch or two of space at the top of the stockpot.
2. Simmer.  Heat the cider over high heat until it reaches a simmer.  Then reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for about 2 hours, or until the apples are completely soft.
3. Blend the cider. Carefully ladle or pour the mixture into a blender and blend for at least a minute until completely smooth. Pour back into the stockpot and continue simmering on low until ready to serve.
4. Sweeten.  Stir in your desired amount of sweetener, to taste.
5. Serve warm***. Ladle into mugs and garnish with a cinnamon stick, if desired. 

*You can use any apple variety that you have on hand. I used all red delicious and ended up not needing as much sweetener since this variety is on the sweeter side.
**If you prefer, you can use 4 whole cinnamon sticks and 1 tablespoon whole cloves, but you will need to remove these before blending the cider.
***For any leftovers, let the cider cool to room temperature, then transfer to a sealed jar and refrigerate for up to 5 days. Or freeze for up to 3 months.