While everyone is DROOLING over Pumpkin Spice Lattes at Starbucks, I myself prefer their Hot Caramel Apple Spice. This recipe is SO easy to duplicate at home and could easily be made with all store bought ingredients, but I wanted to make this post special by making my own apple cider.

RECIPE FOR APPLE CIDER

What you’ll need:

• 8-10 apples
• 4 Tbspn ground cinnamon
• 4 Tbspn allspice
• 1/2 – 1 cup brown sugar
• Cheesecloth
• Water

Step 1. Cut apples into quarters, leaving the skin on and seeds in.

Step 2. Fill the pot with enough water to cover the apples. Add a half cup of sugar to start. (You don’t want your cider to be ruined by over sweetening.)

Step 3. Use a cheesecloth to create a pouch for the cinnamon and allspice and throw that into the pot. (You just want the flavor of the spices, but not have them floating in your cider. If you use whole spices, you can skip the cheesecloth.)

Step 4. Boil the apples on high for one hour. After that, turn the heat to simmer for another two hours. Test the sweetness of the cider to see if you need to add more sugar. I only used half a cup of sugar and it tasted perfectly! Not too sweet and not at all tart. When the apples cool, mash them up with a potato masher.

Step 5. Finally, strain the juices from the apple mush. I’m sure there are many things you can do with the strained mush like use them to make a dessert, but I just composted mine. When you go to make Hot Caramel Apple Spice, heat the cider before assembling.

It may seem like a lot of work to make your own apple cider, but total hands-on time was only 15 minutes. The stove does the rest of the work for you and your house smells amazing in the meantime!

I would love to take claim for this recipe as my own, but the truth is I had some help. The original recipe can be found here.

HOW TO ASSEMBLE HOT CARAMEL APPLE SPICE

And there you have it!

I actually liked my homemade version better. I was able to control the amount of sugar in it. I always have a major sugar crash after drinking the Starbucks version, even though I love how it tastes!

Wouldn’t this drink make a great welcome treat to all your guests this Thanksgiving?

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