I hope you've had a chance to see my photo blog about making cider the old-fashioned way. Since I already shared a complicated cookie recipe involving cider last week, this week, I have a simple cider drink recipe that is all-homemade and all-delicious! You could pour some caramel sauce from a jar into some apple cider, but last I checked, most of the ice cream toppings that are widely available are artificially flavored. So, I have a microwaveable 1-mug recipe for you to make caramel from scratch and add some cider, and it's so easy, you won't even have to worry about your hair. And it would make a great addition to any harvest party menu because it's a new twist on two old favorites: caramel apples, and apple cider. I hope you love it half as much as my mother does!
Caramel Apple Cider
1 Tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon butter
1 teaspoon whipping cream
Apple cider (about 1 Cup)
Microwave brown sugar and butter in a microwave-safe mug for 1 minute.
TIP: Instead of mashing butter into a teaspoon, use the Tablespoon marks on the butter wrapper - a teaspoon
is 1/3 of a Tablespoon, so cut accordingly. Stir together and add cream. Microwave an additional 30 seconds. Stir, and add a small amount of cider, stirring constantly. TIP: Adding a lot of cider (which is probably cold from the fridge) to the hot caramel sauce will cause the caramel sauce to instantly get sticky and hard; adding a little cider and stirring well will sort of temper the caramel (this is the opposite of slowly raising the temperature of egg yolks in a custard recipe; here we are slowly lowering the temperature of the caramel sauce). After the caramel and cider are mixed, slowly add the rest of the cider, and then microwave another 1.5-2 minutes. TIP: All microwaves vary, so you may need to
adjust the amount of time within each stage of this recipe; using a clear glass mug will allow you to see
what is happening. After heating for the last time, stir well and enjoy! The caramel will float to the top in the microwave, but if you stir it well it should stay relatively well mixed; I used a small whisk. TIP: Feel free to add spices as you would to hot mulled cider. I like cinnamon and cloves, but nutmeg, ginger and allspice are all great harvest flavors. TIP: Don't use a mug that's too small, or your caramel-to-cider ratio will be a little strong on the caramel side; I made this for my grandparents in their smaller mugs and it was much too sweet.
Party-Size:
Party-Size:
6 Tablespoons brown sugar
2 Tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons cream
6 Cups Apple Cider
Microwave times will definitely be longer, but with a quantity this large, it's probably much easier to do this in a large sauce pan or stock pot. Just melt the brown sugar and butter together over medium heat, add the cream, stir in a little of the cider (as explained earlier), and then add the rest and heat to simmering.
His and hers (my parents'):
His and hers (my parents'):
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