Gather all of the beautiful, fresh, Fall and Winter fruit available, pop it into the crock pot, and warm up with this delicious Homemade Fall Harvest Hot Crockpot Apple Cider. Warm and comforting this homemade spiced apple cider recipe is a must in your arsenal of Fall drinks to nourish and delight.
Fall Harvest Hot Crockpot Apple Cider
It was totally my intention to make a big pot of this Crockpot Hot Apple Cider for Halloween night.
I envisaged a cold rainy night where we would sit on the porch and have a few sips of our delicious hot cider straight from the slow cooker, as we passed out candy to the neighbourhood kids.
Along comes Halloween night, and it is so hot, we end up sitting in the yard with the neighbours drinking icy cold beers instead. Alas, my little hot apple cider fantasy was not to be.
My poor son was stuffed into a big puffy pumpkin outfit to boot - that sweaty little man was not a happy chappy.
What Ingredients Will We Need?
Homemade crockpot hot apple cider is so comforting and delicious, I always go through a couple of batches during Fall.
Plus it makes the house smell all comfy and festive.
It requires just a handful of seasonal fruit, some spices and a touch of natural sweetener like honey or maple syrup and you have yourself a warm glass of Fall to get you in the spirit of the season.
Grab yourself some:
- Apples
- Persimmons
- Pears
- Oranges
- Pomegranates
- Cinnamon
- Mulling Spices, and
- Honey (or maple syrup to make it vegan).
Pop it all in the slow cooker and allow to simmer for around 8 hours before removing the fruit and spices and blending it all up until nice and smooth.
How Do I Serve and Reheat Crockpot Hot Apple Cider?
You can serve it straight from the slow cooker so it is still nice and warm, and make it pretty by serving it up with some apple and orange slices and a nice little bit of star anise.
You can also make it ahead of time, store in the fridge and then heat the whole batch in the crockpot on the keep warm setting or heat just one cup at a time in a saucepan on the stovetop or in the microwave.
Speaking of Fall fruit, make sure you use up leftover cranberries with some Pumpkin and Fresh Cranberry Bread or Cranberry and Clove Apple Sauce. They will definitely keep you in the holiday spirit, and make your house smell amazing to boot 🙂
Use Up Fruit About To Turn!
I have packed this crockpot apple cider full of all the beautiful, fresh, Fall fruit available at the farmers market at this time of year.
It is a great way to use up some of the old, wrinkly, forgotten fruit languishing at the bottom of the fruit bowl or the back of the fridge at the end of the week.
I have definitely been known to sneak some overly squishy pears bound for the garbage in there, and they tasted great (so much sweeter)! Play around with the fruit you have on hand, and make it your own.
Do you have a favourite hot drink you enjoy when the cooler weather rolls around? I would love to hear from you.
Fall Harvest Crockpot Apple Cider
Ingredients
- 4 apples use multiple varieties
- 2 persimmons
- 1 pear I used an asian pear
- 1 orange
- Handful of pomegranate arils optional
- 9 cups water
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- 2 tbsp mulling spices
- honey or maple syrup to taste
Instructions
- Core the apples, persimmons and pears and cut into quarters. Leave the skin on
- Cut the orange into slices
- Pop all of the fruit, along with the water, cinnamon sticks and mulling spices (tie these into some cheese cloth so that they are easily removed), into the crockpot. Set on low for 8 hours
- Once cooked, remove the cinnamon sticks, the mulling spices and as much of the fruit as possible
- Pour the remaining liquid into a blender (I do this in 2 batches), blend, and then pour through a fine mesh sieve (I actually used a nut milk bag), into a clean container
- Pour the cider back into the slow cooker, and set to keep warm
- Serve warm, and use some honey or maple syrup to sweeten if required. Garnish with some orange and apple slices and some pomegranate arils to make it pretty (optional)
Notes
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Don’t forget to follow Whole Food Bellies on Pinterest for more recipe inspiration! Or if Pinterest isn’t your style, bookmark this post! Let’s keep the conversation going- join my Facebook group!
- Slow Cooked Minced Pork Ragu
- The Perfect Slow Cooker Ratatouille Recipe
- Slow Cooker Potato Leek and Cheddar Soup
- Slow Cooker Spicy Steak Lentils and Quinoa
- Spiced Slow Cooker Cranberry Apple Cider
A B says
I am in the process of testing this recipe and added leftover cranberries from my Thanksgiving produce -- looking forward to it!
Tamara says
IF I want to double this do I need to double everything or just the water? I’m excited to try the recipe but need to make a large batch.
Donna says
I haven't tried doubling it before, but I would double everything, otherwise it will just taste very watered down I think.
Jade says
My grandma used to make apple cider in the slow cooker and making this made me think of her. I didn’t have any persimmons so I just ised more of the other fruit and it was great.
Donna says
Perfect! I love how forgiving this is in terms of what fruit you use!
Lorna says
I live in the UK and love visiting the East Coast during fall. We don’t have have this in the UK and when I had it for the first time I loved it!! Over here anything mulled is alcoholic and I don’t like alcohol so I’m SO happy I found this recipe - thank you! Also thanks for mentioned about not putting persimmons in, I don’t think I’ve ever seen them in the UK and actually had to google what they were. Oops haha!
Donna says
Oh that makes me so happy Lorna! I grew up in the UK so I know what you mean about everything mulled being alcoholic, sometimes it's nice to have a nice mulled drink you can enjoy without that extra kick (especially if you don't like alcohol!). Haha I had no idea what a persimmon was until I moved to the US either 🙂
Molly Kumar says
This looks so pretty and literally makes me feel like the holidays. Pinning your recipe to try soon.
Donna says
Enjoy!
kita says
I live in an apple region and was just excitedly talking about fall cider! it is so perfect and homey this time of year. I love the idea of whipping up a batch of hot cider on a crisp day. I love that this can be made in the crockpot so I can have it at the next family gathering as part of the beverage bar and it will be warm and ready the whole time.
Eden says
This was so amazing! All of my favorite fall flavors in one pot! The kitchen smelled so beautiful!!
Donna says
It has such a gorgeous smell!
Eden | Sweet Tea and Thyme says
Love love love homemade cider! I know the house has got to smell like heaven while this is going!
Danielle says
I can only imagine myself the amount of health benefits this cider has! Such a great way to prepare your body for the winter... I know it is September but hey, the time flies by so quickly!
Donna says
So good!! It's winter in Aus so we have been enjoying this for the past few months 🙂