Ehhh hehm…may I introduce you to my new favorite fall sip? This slow cooker pear cider has me wondering why I have only been giving apples the cider treatment for so long.
I have actually been dreaming of pear cider for what feels like FOREVER!
Literally, waiting and waiting until the weather was just right and I had a day where I could stay at home all day and inhale its amazing aroma as it cooked.
Last weekend I finally had that day – an entire Saturday with a house full of kids and nowhere really pressing to be. It had to happen!
I started the cider first thing in the morning before anyone else was stirring – I wanted to really savor the moment, play a little music and take in all of the spices. It was magical and for the next 8 hours our house smelled like absolute heaven!
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This pear cider is great on it’s own piping hot, but when you add a bit of spiced rum or bourbon it makes a pretty spectacular cool weather cocktail!
Ingredients
- 8 medium pears, assorted types ( I used Red Anjou, Bartlett, & Bosc)
- 1 orange
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- 2 star anise
- 2–3 slices of fresh ginger
- 1 whole nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons whole cloves
- 6 cups filtered water
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
Instructions
- Wash the pears and orange then cut into quarters. Seeds, peels and stems are OK. Place the fruit in the bottom of your slow cooker Add the cinnamon sticks, star anise, ginger slices, nutmeg and cloves.
- Fill to the top of the slow cooker with water, leaving about an 1/4-1/2-inch of space at the top. Cook on high heat for 3-4 hours or on low heat for 6-8 hours.
- An hour before the cider is done cooking, use a potato masher to mash the fruit once it is softened. Cook for an additional hour.
- Strain the pear cider through a fine-mesh strainer or cheese cloth into a clean pitcher or pot, pressing on the solids to get all of the juice out of the fruit. Stir in the maple syrup until it is dissolved and serve hot.
- The cider can be stored in a heat-safe container for up to 5 days.
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These photos are beautiful, woman! I can smell the cider from my screen…
Awwww, thanks lady! I love you the mostest 🙂
Recipe in my crockpot now,so simple to make.I’m always looking for ways to use pears from my tree.Can’t wait to taste already smells good.
Yay Rita! I am so glad you have it cooking – that aroma is intoxicating! I bet you love having a pear tree – I wish we had a fruit tree in our yard 😉
This looks great! I’m going to serve it at our annual holiday cookie party in a few weeks :). I have 2 questions for you: (1) what sized crockpot did you use? I only have a 6qt so I’m worried that adding water to the top will make this too watery (2) your picture of pouring the cider over slices of pear and cinn sticks looks cool. Did you do this when the cider was hot? Just wondering if it turns it into a mushy mess in the cup. Thanks!