Slow Cooker Mulled Cranberry Cider

Slow Cooker Mulled Cranberry Cider: Apple cider, pineapple juice, fresh oranges, and cranberries are spiced with cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg and simmered together in the slow cooker.

When my entire immediate family gets together at the holidays, there are two drinks that my mom always has available for us: Christmas Tea and Mulled Cider.

My mom’s Christmas tea is tea that has been steeped with cranberry juice, pineapple juice, orange juice and sugar. Lots of sugar. The mulled cider is simply a packet of spices and sugars my mom dumps into local apple cider. Both are delicious but both are LOADED with added sugars. And because I desire to have my sugars in the form of holiday cookies—I do not want to drink them.

But oh how I love both cider and Christmas tea. So I decided to combine the flavors of mulled cider with Christmas Tea and cut out ALL added sugars. The verdict, is that I served it to my siblings and parents whom devoured it and only stated over and over how delicious it was–ZERO mention that it was not the traditional beverage served. 

The other thing worth mentioning is that I also served this lovely beverage at a Friendsgiving I hosted and I had people begging me for the link to the recipe–but I had no link to the recipe, until now 😉 You can thank my lovely friends for insisting I share this with you all!

Seriously–why was I holding out on you so long for this recipe?!!! It is so simple and so delicious. The cider is naturally sweet of course, but the addition of pineapple juice heightens the natural sweetness of the beverage and then the fresh cranberries and oranges bring a tartness that cuts through the sweetness and finally cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger bring warmth and a festive punch to the wassail. 

Did I mention this beauty simmer in the slow cooker? You can seriously set it and forget it and allow your guests to dip right from the slow cooker for a welcomed holiday beverage. And for those times when your slow cooker is already in use–go ahead and simmer on the stove for 1-2 hours!

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Slow Cooker Mulled Cranberry Cider

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 2 hours

Total Time 2 hours 5 minutes

Servings 16

Ingredients

• 1 gallon apple cider
• 2 cups pineapple juice
• 1 cup fresh cranberries
• 1 orange thinly sliced
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

Instructions

1. Place all ingredient in the slow cooker.
2. Cook on low for 4-6 hours or on high for 2-3 hours.