Mulled Cider Shrub Recipe

By
Anna Markow
Anna Markow: Contributing Writer at Serious Eats
Anna Markow
Once an irregularly-employed pastry chef in New York City, Anna Markow shared her unique treats with Serious Eats as catharsis from 2012-2013. She returned home to Maine to grow carrot cake from seed in 2019.
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Updated August 30, 2018
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Photograph: Anna Markow

The great thing about this particular shrub is that it's ready to consume immediately, as a lot of the vinegar's intensity is cooked out. It's a lot more mild and sweet than most shrubs, and doesn't require anything but a splash of soda or a shot of your choice of booze to make a tasty beverage.

For a nonalcoholic treat, fill a 12-ounce glass with ice, add 3 ounces shrub, fill with seltzer, stir gently. If you want to spike it, aged rum, bourbon, and even cognac (Hennessy and cider shrub tastes like apple pie) make excellent accompaniments. Add a little black walnut or whiskey barrel-aged bitters to balance the sweetness, if you like. Or, if you have a big enough pot and any sort of holiday party going on as soon as that same evening, a quadruple batch of this would make a great base for a punch bowl libation.

Recipe Details

Mulled Cider Shrub Recipe

Active 60 mins
Total 2 hrs
Serves 12 to 14 servings
Makes 5 cups
Cook Mode (Keep screen awake)

Ingredients

  • 2 cups sugar

  • 4 cinnamon sticks

  • 1 vanilla bean cold water, plus more as needed

  • 2 tablespoons whole cloves

  • 2 tablespoons whole allspice

  • 1 cardamom pod

  • 1 quart apple cider

  • 1 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar

  • 2-inch knob fresh ginger, sliced thin

  • 2 apples, quartered and sliced thin (I use sweeter varieties like Fuji or Golden Delicious)

  • Peel of 1/2 orange

  • Peel of 1/2 lemon

Directions

  1. In a large pot, combine sugar, cinnamon, vanilla bean, cloves, allspice, and cardamom. Place over high heat. Once the sugar begins to melt and caramelize slightly in places, stir occasionally to ensure somewhat even caramelization and some toasting of spices. Once sugar is all melted and caramel is almost the color of maple syrup, remove from heat and carefully add cider, then vinegar, ginger, apple and citrus peels.

  2. Return pot to heat, bringing to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Stir occasionally. Once all sugar has melted back down, remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature before pressing through a fine mesh strainer. Keep chilled, shaking gently before using as shrubs tend to separate a little in storage. Keeps for at least a month.

Special equipment

Stock pot, fine mesh strainer

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
169Calories
0gFat
42gCarbs
0gProtein
×
Nutrition Facts
Servings: 12 to 14
Amount per serving
Calories169
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0g0%
Saturated Fat 0g0%
Cholesterol 0mg0%
Sodium 6mg0%
Total Carbohydrate 42g15%
Dietary Fiber 1g4%
Total Sugars 39g
Protein 0g
Vitamin C 28mg138%
Calcium 17mg1%
Iron 0mg1%
Potassium 129mg3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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