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A delicious cider made in your slow cooker with apples and cranberries, sweetened with caramel topping.
Caramel Cran-Apple Cider
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This month's Ultimate Recipe Challenge is "Slow Cooker", perfect for this time of the year. Do you pull out your slow cooker in the fall or do you use it all year around? I use mine all year around, in the summer it works great to make meals and still keep my kitchen cool and in winter I love making hot drinks like this cider in it.
I had found this Slow Cooker Apple Cider recipe from Gimme Some Oven that I have been wanting to try for a long time. I also wanted to try make it with caramel sauce because apples and caramel go so well together. As I was putting my ingredients in my slow cooker, I realized that mine must have been smaller than the original recipe as mine was overflowing... so I did cut my recipe back just a little - my slow cooker is 6 quart size. I also used only a strainer to get my broth and some of the pulp went through the strainer but it still tasted great - if you don't like pulp use a strainer with cheese cloth.
Another plan I had was to make homemade caramel sauce but I ran out of time so used store bought.
I had found this Slow Cooker Apple Cider recipe from Gimme Some Oven that I have been wanting to try for a long time. I also wanted to try make it with caramel sauce because apples and caramel go so well together. As I was putting my ingredients in my slow cooker, I realized that mine must have been smaller than the original recipe as mine was overflowing... so I did cut my recipe back just a little - my slow cooker is 6 quart size. I also used only a strainer to get my broth and some of the pulp went through the strainer but it still tasted great - if you don't like pulp use a strainer with cheese cloth.
Another plan I had was to make homemade caramel sauce but I ran out of time so used store bought.
Ingredients:
7 apples (I used a variety of types - red, yellow and green)
1 orange
1 cup whole cranberries
8-10 cups water
3 cinnamon sticks
1 whole nutmeg
2 tsp whole cloves
2 star anise (optional)
1/2 tsp allspice (I used ground)
1 jar 12.25 oz Smuckers Caramel Topping
1 tsp cinnamon (optional)
Directions:
Cut and quarter apples (I did core my apples but didn't peel).
Cut and quarter orange.
Place apples and oranges in slow cooker.
Add cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, anise and all spice.
Add water, filling the slow cooker leaving about 1/2 inch from the top.
Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
An hour before it is done, smash apples with potato masher or back of spoon. Cook for another hour.
Strain liquid through fine mesh strainer or cheese cloth or both.
Return liquid to slow cooker and mix in 1 tsp cinnamon (optional) and caramel topping.
Serve Hot!
Or serve with whip cream and drizzle with caramel topping.
I did put the left over in the fridge and warmed each cup up as I need it. You need to shake the cider as it does separate. The flavours mesh even more as it sits in the fridge.. YUM!
You didn't have cranberries on your ingredient list. How many do you use?
ReplyDeleteHi Ali, Sorry about that.. I used one cup of cranberries. Thanks for pointing that I missed the cranberries.
DeleteThis sounds so good. Perfect for a winter party, especially since you can keep it in the slow cooker. Fantastic idea to add some caramel to it. Yum!
ReplyDelete