Chai Spiced Cider w/ Rum

Ingredients:

1/2 vanilla bean, split
1 three inch cinnamon stick
25 cloves
25 cardamom pods
1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
about 1 teaspoon shredded ginger
2 or more slices of orange
3 cups water
4 or 5 cups organic unfiltered apple juice
dark rum to taste (optional), i use about a pint, but let it cook down a bit


Directions: 
Bring water to a low simmer in a medium saucepan. By low I mean just barely steaming, no bubbles or anything. Add all spices except peppercorns and ginger, and add orange slices as well.

Place pepper and ginger in a tea ball and add to the mix for about five minutes, and then remove. The pepper flavor gets really bitter and strong if you leave it in longer, and the ginger is also a very strong flavor that does better in short steepings for this recipe.

Add apple juice and leave on the stove for at least 45 minutes. After this time add rum if you wish and serve up.

This would be nice to make a lot of and leave on the stove for a party, as it makes the whole house smell cozy. Also, if you choose not to use any rum, the cider will be a little tart, so you might want to add some agave nectar or other sweetener.

If you don't like the flavor of vanilla or ginger, you could safely leave these out altogether, however the other spices are essential to the chai flavor.

Serves: about 15 or so, depends on glass size

Preparation time: 15 minutes plus cook time
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