Five Fabulous Fall Beverages In the Slow Cooker
As the air takes a brisk turn, it’s time to start thinking about ways to celebrate the autumn season. And what better way to take the chill off than with a warm beverage that has been simmering in the slow cooker all day long?
A warm drink can be a festive accompaniment to all of your favorite fall activities, from tailgating to trick-or-treating, raking leaves (well maybe that one is not such a favorite but at least a drink in hand will make it a little more fun), to hauling in some freshly cut firewood and lighting up the fireplace for the first time this season.
Apple Cider
When you head to the pumpkin patch to pick out your annual Halloween jack o’ lantern, make sure to pick up a few jugs of fresh apple cider as well. Simmered for hours with cinnamon sticks, a clove studded apple, and other spices, this brew is a surefire way to scare the spooky out of all the little ghouls and goblins that might be visiting you this year.
You can also serve this hot spiced cider to your more grown up guests spiked with a little spiced rum if you like. In fact, I love hot apple cider so much, that when my husband and I had our wedding in October (and it was a brisk, damp October day), we welcomed our guests with steaming glasses of it.
Hot Chocolate
As it starts to get even colder, and the holiday season approaches (which, to many retailers, is right now!), rich hot chocolate is the perfect thing. Served with bowls of garnishes such as marshmallows, whipped cream, and chocolate shavings on the side, this is the ideal beverage to serve to your family and friends at a holiday open house. And the slow cooker will keep it warm in an out-of-the-way spot where your guests can serve themselves.
Mulled Wine
If you want to serve a beverage that is a bit more grown up, you can try your hand at mulling your own wine. A couple bottles of wine and some mulling spices are a great combination that will only improve over time. To add a bit of zip, you can include some citrus zest. For this drink, you don’t have to buy one of the more expensive bottles in the wine shop. A reasonable, medium bodied red that is a little spicy and fruity, such as red Zinfandel, will do just the trick.
Hot Toddy
For those days that you are not feeling up to snuff, the hot toddy is the perfect cure for what ails you. This blend of whisky or brandy with honey and lemon is reputed to have powerful cold fighting abilities. Although you may not need to make a huge batch, the slow cooker is still a good way to go as you can stay in bed instead of watching it, like you would if it were on the stove.
Irish Coffee
You can serve any of these warm beverages at your next tailgating event, and hot brewed Irish coffee is another one that will surely be a welcome option. If you have a plug-in adaptor for your car, even better. You can set your slow cooker (or multiple slow cookers) up along with the rest of your spread. This will avoid the frozen beer syndrome that my husband experienced at the sub-zero playoff game of his favorite football team a couple of years ago.
Stay toasty this fall season and fill your home with a lovely fragrance by serving one of your favorite warm beverages cooked in the slow cooker!
Made with apple cider, whole cloves, cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, crystallized ginger
Serves/Makes: 1 gallon
- 12 whole cloves
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- 2 whole nutmeg
- 2 chunks crystallized ginger
- 1 gallon apple cider
For best results, combine the cloves, cinnamon stick, nutmeg, and ginger in a spice bag so they can be easily removed before serving.
Add the spices and apple cider to the crock pot. Cover the crock pot and cook on high heat for 2 hours. Remove the spices. Turn the crock pot to low to keep warm while serving.
Made with lime and lemon, apple cider, cranberry juice cocktail, tequila, orange liqueur
Serves/Makes: 6
- 4 cups apple cider
- 1 cup cranberry juice cocktail
- 1/2 cup tequila
- 1/4 cup triple sec or other orange liqueur
- lime and lemon slices for garnish
In a crockpot, heat cider and cranberry juice cocktail on low just until hot for 2 hours (do not let boil).
Just before serving, turn on high for 10 minutes and stir in tequila and liqueur. Serve toddy in mugs, garnished with lime and lemon slices. Recipe easily doubles.
Made with vanilla extract, heavy whipping cream, whole or 2% milk, white chocolate
Serves/Makes: 10 cups
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 6 cups whole or 2% milk
- 3 bars (4 ounce size) white chocolate, coarsely chopped
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Combine all the ingredients in the crock pot.
Cover the crock pot and cook on low heat for 2 hours or until the chocolate is melted and the milk is hot.
Stir the hot chocolate well before serving.
Made with lemon, dry red wine, cinnamon stick, ground cloves, ground nutmeg, lemon juice, sugar
Serves/Makes: 8
- 1 long cinnamon stick, broken into 1 inch pieces
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1 bottle (750ml size) dry red wine
- thin lemon slices
Combine the cinnamon stick, cloves, nutmeg, lemon juice, sugar, and wine in a crock pot. Mix well to dissolve the sugar.
Cover the crock pot and cook on high heat for 1 hour or until hot. Reduce the temperature to warm (or the lowest setting your crock pot has) and keep warm for serving.
Ladle the mulled wine into individual heat-proof mugs or cups. Float a lemon slice on top of each serving or add a cinnamon stick.
Serves/Makes: 1
- 10 ounces brewed coffee
- 3 ounces Bailey's Original Irish cream
- 1/4 cup heavy cream, whipped until stiff peaks form
- ground cinnamon (optional)
Gently heat a balloon wine glass by adding very hot (not boiling) water to it and letting it sit for 1 minute. Drain the water and wipe the glass out with a clean dish towel.
Add the hot coffee to the wine glass. Stir the Irish cream into the coffee and mix gently.
Top the hot coffee with whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Serve immediately.
If you want to make a larger batch of this you can add brewed coffee and Irish cream to a crock pot and keep warm. Simply top with whipped cream at serving time.
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1 comments
Where do you find a slow cooker with a car adaptor? What brand do you have? Thanks, Carla
CDKitchen Note: It's not that the slow cooker comes with a car adapter, you can purchase adapters to accommodate small appliances, electronics, etc. It's like a power strip/surge protector that plugs into your car's lighter.Comment posted by Carla
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