Hot Spiced Apple and Cranberry Juice

So it's autumn and I love this time of year! Not only does nature do some wonderful, colourful things, but as the weather gets colder we are given free rein to make heartily indulgent treats. When the evenings start sneaking up on you, it's the perfect excuse to snuggle up with something warm and comforting. For me, nothing says comfort quite like hot, spiced drinks.

The best thing about this recipe is that there is absolutely no guilt attached compared to its Spiced Cider and Mulled Wine counterparts since I use juice with no added sugar and don't have to feel bad about day drinking. I make this in a large vat and just leave it to casually dip in to throughout the course of two or three days. Next time you go for an evening stroll, fill up a keep-cup and take it along with you.

Although this is clearly alcohol-free, it is also delicious with a tot of brandy or spiced rum to make it extra warming and indulgent in the evenings.

This is best made in a slow cooker, but can easily be made in a large, lidded oven dish or on the hob with a large saucepan over the smallest, lowest light possible. Not only does this make the house smell incredible, but it only gets better the longer it is left, so feel free to ignore it for a few hours. I try to keep the spices large enough to avoid when scooping into a glass, or at least large enough to ensure you cannot accidentally swallow them. Don't worry too much if your spices are not completely whole because it would be incredibly impractical to hunt down perfectly symmetrical star anise for this, but try not to break them into smaller pieces.

I start the batch with only two litres of juice, but the spices will happily yield about 4 litres of yumminess, maybe 5 at a push. Just add more juice when the pot runs low, or if the burn of the spices needs to be tempered slightly. Stop topping up the liquid and throw away the used spices when:

a) the spices start tasting dull and lacklustre

b) the juice starts looking murky or cloudy in the glass

c) the cinnamon sticks are completely uncurled and soft to the point of breaking

There are only two rules when making this, but they are pretty important:

Rule 1) Do not let it boil! This should not be rushed, so please don't be tempted to whack up the temperature and hope for the best. Making sure the flavours are released slowly ensures that your last glass will be just as tasty as the first, and frankly, the spice blend will burn like the fires of Hades if you force all the flavour out as quickly as you can.

Rule 2) Keep the clementine in one piece! Ok, so the world will not end if it the clementine bursts, but it will make your beautifully clear juice all bitty and murky. Picking around a few bits of fruit in your first glass is fine, but it gets stringy and multiplies into an billion pieces by the time you get to your third. It is just easier to keep it one piece. Trust me.

Hot Spiced Apple and Cranberry Juice

INGREDIENTS

25g Cinnamon Sticks

25g Fresh Ginger

30 Whole Cloves (ish... I just grabbed a small handful!)

6 Star Anise

1 Clementine

1 litre No Added Sugar Apple Juice (+ another for later)

1 litre No Added Sugar Cranberry Juice (+ another for later)

*optional spiced rum or brandy to serve

1) Finely slice the ginger into pieces that are still large enough to comfortably avoid accidentally drinking, but small enough to get out loads of flavour.

2) Throw the cinnamon, chopped ginger, star anise and whole cloves into the cold pot. I use a lot of cloves because I like the warming burn, but by all means reduce these by up to half if that is not your thing.

3) Grill the clementine for several minutes on a high heat until it starts turning brown. You will be able to see the oils being released from the skin under the heat. Flip the clementine and grill it on the other side. Leave it to cool slightly so that you do not burn yourself in the next step.

4) The clementine should be slightly crisp to the touch. Hold it firmly and stab it repeatedly with a skewer or a fork, being careful not to hurt yourself. Try to get as many holes in the clementine as possible without ripping gashes in the skin. Add this to the pot of spices.

5) Add a litre each of cranberry juice and apple juice then let the magic of the slow cooker do its thing! Leave the juice at least 4 hours to infuse before you start drinking it, 6 hours if you like it fiery.

Top up the juice as required but make sure you leave time for it to warm back up again before diving in.

6) If making this alcoholic, add 25ml of your chosen tipple to your cup before adding the juice.