Hot Spiced Cider

Hot Spiced Cider.  If you've never tried it, you MUST this Fall.  When I worked at the bank, my boss made the mistake of telling me that she didn't like cider.  I was like "Oh no you didn't just say that!"  So the next day I came to work with a determined look on my face, a bag of ingredients, and a coffee maker.  I made my spiced cider, gave her a mug full, and much to her surprise she LOVED it.  While she still doesn't care for plain cider, she is now a Hot Spiced Cider fan.  And I think you will be too once you give this recipe a shot.

Now, there are two ways you can make it.  If you have a regular coffee pot you can use it to make this quickly.  If you are like me and have a keurig brewer, you can make it in the crock pot.  If you are making it in a coffee maker, just be sure to clean it immediately after you're done by running a plain water cycle through before using it for coffee again.

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 tsp. whole allspice

1 tsp. whole cloves

1 cinnamon stick, broken in half

1/4 tsp. salt

1 pinch ground nutmeg

2 quarts apple cider

For Coffee Maker:

Place a filter in the basket of your coffee maker.  To the filter, add brown sugar, allspice, cloves, cinnamon stick, salt, and nutmeg.  Pour the apple cider into the coffee maker where the water usually goes.  Brew and serve hot.

For Crock Pot:

In piece of cheese cloth or a large coffee filter, add the brown sugar, allspice, cloves, cinnamon stick, salt, and nutmeg and tie with butchers string to make a spice pouch.  Add the cider to a crock pot, throw the spice pouch in, cover and cook on high until hot.  Before serving, stir well to make sure the spice pouch completely infused the cider.  Serve hot.