Mulled Cider and Other Fall Drinks

Okay, here is a really good Fall Drink. Good for what ails ya'.

You have to make this drink in a crock pot or ceramic dish, or a non-reactive metal sauce-pan (this means only use stainless steel, don't use aluminum). Makes enough for three servings.

Ingredients:
1 quart plain apple cider or apple juice (there doesn't seem to much difference in the commercial brands)
1/2 cup brandy (experiment with what flavor, if any) *optional ingredient
1 cinnamon stick
6-8 whole cloves
1/2 cup craisins or dried cranberries
2/3 cup honey or 3/4 cup brown sugar (I personally prefer brown sugar in this version)
1 orange
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract or one whole vanilla bean
Cheesecloth

Heat the cider or juice on low in the pot with the brandy, and while it's warming up cut the zest from the orange with a veggie peeler, or if you have a zester, us that. This just means cutting the orange from the orange peel. If you wind up getting the white stuff, you'll have to pick it out, because even a tiny bit of it will make this drink bitter. Put the zest into the cheesecloth (you'll be making a bag out of it soon) and pound it lightly so that the orange oil is released. Now form a bag from the cheesecloth, and put all of the other dry ingredients in (the cinn. stick, cloves, craisins, and vanilla bean if you're using one). Tie the bag tightly and drop into the cider. Let this steep on low heat until it starts to steam. At that point, add the sugar or honey and the vanilla extract. Taste and see. . .if you need to add more spices or sweetner;) If the brandy is too alcoholic for your taste buds, let the cider simmer a little bit, and the taste will diminish the longer you simmer. Ladle into mugs and stick a cinnamon stick into it, if you want.

For a really nice drink when you have a cold, try Mulled Wine:

Ingredients:

1 750ml Bottle of either red or white Zinfindel, Merlot, Reisling, or Viognier wine (remember, a bad wine tastes REALLY bad when heated, so don't get just anything, BUT, a cheaper wine is just as good as a better one in this case). This makes enough for however many people you usually split a whole bottle of wine with.
1/2 cup Brandy
2/3 cup sugar (I use raw sugar)
6-8 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
zest from 1/2 an orange

Just like for the mulled cider, pour the wine and brandy into a non-reactive pan (crock pot is the best I'm tellin' ya') and put it on low heat. This is very important: don't let the wine come to a boil. Put it on very, very low heat. Remove the zest from half an orange, put it in some cheesecloth, pound it a bit, make a bag out of the cheesecloth with the pounded zest inside and put the spices into it, tie it, and toss it into the pot. Let this steep for as long as it takes for the wine to start steaming. When this happens, gently stir in the sugar and taste to see if it needs more. Ladle into mugs. Yum yum!

Okay, you are going to LOVE this one. It is a bit of work, but the end product is very, very good. This is REAL egg nog with a bit of a twist. And the eggs get cooked, so you don't have to worry about salmonella.

Chocolate Egg Nog
2 cups whole milk
1/4 cup bourbon or rum
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
4 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup heavy cream or whipping cream
1 cup grated bittersweet chocolate (this is chocolatey, you might want to experiment)
1/4 cup creme de cacao or other chocolate liqueur
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg (plus more for a garnish if you can wait long enough to put a garnish on)
1/4 tsp. allspice
A big punchbowl or mixing bowl for the finished product.

In a non-reactive saucepan, heat the cream over low heat until it just starts to boil. Place the bittersweet chocolate into the punchbowl or large bowl and pour the hot cream over it. Reserve this mixture. Pour the milk into the saucepan and heat over low, stirring occasionally to make sure the milk doesn't burn on the bottom of the pan. While this is heating up, beat the egg yolks in a bowl with the vanilla, allspice, nutmeg and sugar until they are totally incorporated. When the milk starts to steam, it is at the scalding stage, turn off the heat. With one hand, or a friend, whisking the egg mixture in the bowl, carefully pour on ladle of hot milk into the eggs and whisk. Now, start whisking the milk left in the pan, and pour in the new egg mixture. Keep gently whisking until you have turned the pan back to low heat. Get a wooden spoon now and stir constantly, making sure to scrape the bottom of the pan the entire time so that the mixture doesn't burn. This mixture is going to thicken as it cooks, and it might take as long as 20 minutes, but you want the drink to the consistency where it coats the back of your wooden spoon. Run a clean finger through the coat on the spoon, and if the mark stays clear, it's done. Pour this hot mixture over the chocolate mixture from earlier, then pour in the alcohols, stir gently, and either serve warm or cool in the fridge, keeping this drink covered.

Enjoy!