Mulling spices are made by mixing the right portion of dried orange and lemon peel (30%), Myrtle Pepper (20%), cloves (25%) and cinnamon (25%).
This sounds easy, right? Wrong. Getting the ingredients is easy, but the secret to making authentic mulled beverages comes down to the quality of the ingredients.
2.) Cloves is a spice that comes from an evergreen tree in the myrtle family. Make sure you get the ones cultivated in Indonesia, Madagascar, Pakistan and Zanzibar.
3) Herbs Drying (Important): it’s best if you buy fresh herbs and dry them yourself. This is because commercially available dried herbs were dried with the low-cost method: oven drying. Oven drying introduces high heat. This will break down the essential oils in the herbs. Without the essential oils that are natural to the herbs, your mulling spices would NOT taste good.
A great way to treat your entire family during this cold winter. Fill your entire room with the aroma.
In a large, nonreactive pot, lightly toast 1 cup dried mulling spices over low heat for about one minute until fragrant. Remove pot from heat; let cool slightly. Slowly add cider (or apple juice) and stir. Return pot to heat and bring mixture to a simmer. Reduce to low heat and continue to simmer for at least 20 minutes. Occasionally gently stir. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer. Carefully ladle into mugs and add a one-inch cinnamon stick into each mug for garnish. Makes 8 servings. You can adjust the amount of mulling spices based on your taste.
Directions: