Hot Apple Cider Toddy
This hot apple cider recipe is a mug of pure autumn magic - warming, cosy, and bursting with spiced-up spirit.
Ingredients
Method
In a bowl, combine the softened butter, brown sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, and cloves. Whip until the butter becomes creamy and the ingredients are incorporated. Place the graham crackers and pumpkin pie spice in a plastic baggie and crush with a rolling pin. Combine the rum extract with the non-dairy whipped topping. In a footed coffee glass, place a single cinnamon stick and a slice of spiced butter. Pour 1 shot whiskey into the glass. Ladle the hot cider to fill the glass. Garnish with a dollop of rum-flavored topping and a sprinkle of graham cracker crumb mixture. Serve warm.
Raise a glass to autumn with this classic hot apple cider recipe.
Everyone loves a hot drink when the weather turns chilly, and this recipe for warm apple cider is the liquid hug your hands have been waiting for. Traditionally sipped as soon as autumn leaves start to fall, or on Bonfire Night in the garden, this hot toddy is the go-to for crisp evenings, festive celebrations, or snuggling up at home after a long walk with the dog.
Our hot apple cider recipe starts with sweet apple cider, gently warmed with melting butter and light brown sugar for extra autumn richness. Stir in spices - nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, and pumpkin pie spice - plus a sprinkle of crushed digestive biscuits so it feels like a hot apple pie in a mug! A dash of rum extract brings the aroma of classic hot toddies, while a shot of bourbon whiskey gives each sip a grown-ups-only punch. Top each steaming mug with a swirl of whipped cream, a cinnamon stick, and maybe a cheeky extra sprinkle of the biscuits for extra crunch.
But the question on everyone’s lips is - why is this recipe for warm apple cider called a toddy? Some say it’s from a fermented palm sap drink called a ‘taddy’ that emanated from India and was drunk by the British in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries (who presumably added in a drop or two of whiskey). Others say it was the invention of an Irish doctor called Robert Bentley Todd who would prescribe a hot drink of brandy, water, sugar and cinnamon for his patients. Maybe the answer has been lost to history.
This hot apple cider recipe is endlessly customisable - add more spice, swap bourbon for rum, or skip the alcohol altogether. And for peak seasonal indulgence, serve with Michelin maestro Tom Kerridge’s toffee apple crumble cake, or a plateful of sensational salted caramel and gingerbread brownies! And if you’re looking for more seasonal sips, try a spiced hot chocolate with the flavours of cardamom and curry powder, or a Christmassy mulled red wine sangria.
