Every year, a dear friend gives us buckets of homegrown apples from her apple trees. She has too many to know what to do with any sends me home with grocery bags filled to the brim with little, crisp apples. We love this recipe because the whole house smells of warm apples and cinnamon by the time you’re finished.

Homemade Apple Cider

This is a personal favorite of mine to make from scratch each year. It always makes the house smell wonderful and is great when heated and enjoyed warm. We love using our homemade apple cider in Hot Toddies and sitting by the fireplace when we’re finished. There’s something about the combination of apples and spices like cinnamon and allspice that makes it feel like fall and winter to me — curl up with a cup by the fireplace and enjoy!

Ingredients

• 20 apples
• 1 1/2 cups of white sugar
• 2 tbsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tbsp ground allspice
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 tsp ground cloves

Instructions

1. Quarter apples.
2. In a large stock pot, add apples. Add water so that the apples are covered by at least 2 inches of water.
3. Stir in sugar, cinnamon, and allspice.
4. Bring to a boil.
5. Boil, uncovered, for 1 hour.
6. After 1 hour, reduce heat to simmer and cover pot. Continue to simmer for 2 hours.
7. Strain through a fine mesh strainer after you are finished summering.
8. Discard pulp.
9. Strain again through strainer / cheese cloth.
10. Bottle and refrigerate immediately.