Homemade Apple Cider is a crisp, nonalcoholic drink made with fresh apples that can be served hot or cold. If you love the taste of apple cider, be sure to try my Caramel Cake with Apple Cider Whipped Cream.

Homemade Apple Cider in Glass Mug
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Homemade Apple Cider

Homemade Apple Cider is the perfect drink for the cool fall and winter months. It is a nonalcoholic beverage that can be enjoyed by all ages. The nice thing about this recipe is that you can use the kinds of apples you prefer, from tart to sweet, or a mix of both (as I did in this recipe). When you make these be sure to save some to use in your Hot Buttered Rum drink and a batch of apple cider muffins!

Pot of Apples for Apple Cider

Homemade Apple Cider Ingredients

Apples: For a more tart cider, choose from apples like Pink Lady, Braeburn, or McIntosh apples. For a sweeter cider, use Gala, Cortland, Golden Delicious, or Fuji apples, just to name a few.

Cinnamon Sticks: I used 4 cinnamon sticks in this recipe. If you don’t have cinnamon sticks, use 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon. (1 stick = 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon)

Pouring Apple Cider into Mug

How to Serve Apple Cider

For hot cider, heat up the cider in a saucepan over low heat. You could also heat it up in the microwave. If you are looking to turn the apple cider into a happy hour drink (alcohol), add rum, sparkling wine, bourbon, scotch, or even cognac. Cheers!

Apple Cider in Mug with Cinnamon Stick

How to Store

Apple Cider can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week.

5 from 5 votes

Homemade Apple Cider

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours
Total Time 3 hours 15 minutes
Homemade Apple Cider is a crisp, nonalcoholic drink made with fresh apples that can be served hot or cold.

Ingredients

  • 10 medium apples, quartered
  • ½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar, packed
  • 4 sticks cinnamon, or 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon ground allspice

Instructions

  • Place quartered apples in a large stockpot and add enough water so it covers the apples by 2 inches when apples are submerged by pushing them down. (The apples will float.)
  • Stir in the brown sugar, cinnamon sticks, and allspice. Bring to a boil and allow to mixture to boil uncovered for an hour.
  • After the boiling, cover the pot, reduce heat, and simmer for 2 hours.
  • After simmering, let the mixture cool a bit before straining it into a bowl through a cheesecloth, gently pressing down on the solids. Discard solids and drain the liquid one more time through the cheesecloth. (You can also use a fine-mesh sieve to drain.)

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Meet Amanda Rettke

Amanda Rettke is the creator of I Am Baker, and the bestselling author of Surprise Inside Cakes: Amazing Cakes for Every Occasion – With a Little Something Extra Inside.Over the course of her 15+ year blogging adventure, she has been featured in and collaborated with the Food Network, New York Times, LA Times, Country Living Magazine, People Magazine, Epicurious, Brides, Romantic Homes, life:beautiful, Publishers Weekly, The Daily Mail, Star Tribune, The Globe and Mail, DailyCandy, YumSugar, The Knot, The Kitchn, and Parade, to name a few.

Reader Comments

  1. I live in North Alabama, we have a few apple orchards around. We picked Black Arkansas Apples two years in a row. Made this recipe with them and it was amazing! I did add brown sugar as Black Arkansas apples are tart.

  2. I found this recipe and thought it would be fun to try and make apple cider from scratch. It turned out delicious. I even used the solids by putting them on toast. Almost like apple butter. Tasty! Thank you for sharing.

    1. I’m braising a pork butt tonight! You can definitely spritz it. I’m using 2 cups of this cider for mine!

    1. Hi Meggan – Here is what is says in the post above the recipe card:

      “How to Store
      Apple Cider can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week.”

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