Hot Apple Cider

I think one of my new favorite smells

is the smell of hot apple cider wafting through the house

on a cold day.

It just seems so quintessentially wintery,

and warms my tummy and my heart.

Making your own cider is pretty easy.

It's pretty much just dumping a gallon of cider into a pot,

adding a bunch of spices to it,

and letting it simmer away on your stove

filling your house with warm, appley, cinnamony smells.

Hot Apple Cider

1 gallon of pure apple cider

3 sticks of cinnamon

1 teaspoon whole cloves

1 teaspoon whole allspice

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 orange peel - peeled off in strips with a peeler

Pour cider into a large pot.

Add spices, sugar, and orange peel.

Heat to a boil, then lower heat to keep warm.

Pour a mugful, grab a blanket, curl up on the couch, 

and watch Love Actually  =)