Social Media

back

The Best Mulled Wine Recipes For The Holidays

eat cooking best mulled wine recipes
EatPost Category - EatEat - Post Category - CookingCookingChristmasPost Category - ChristmasChristmas

Love this classic Christmas tipple? Here are three simple recipes to recreate at home.

Mulled wine generally makes an appearance at every holiday party, work event and carol singing session over the Christmas period. Whilst reaching for a bottle of M&S’s ready-made offering is tempting (we’ve been guilty of this ourselves one too many times), making your own version of this festive staple is super easy and a fun way to get into the Christmas spirit. These three recipes will see you through the holidays and fill your apartment with some heavenly scents… ‘tis the season, after all.

Read more: Your Guide To Dining At Home This Christmas: Catering & Where To Shop

eat cooking best mulled wine recipes jamie oliver

A traditional take
If you’re a traditionalist at heart then this is the recipe for you. Using classic spices and fragrant fruits, the result will warm any Scrooge’s heart.
Recipe adapted from Jamie Oliver

Ingredients (serves 4)
• 2 bottles of Italian red wine
• 2 clementines
• 1 lemon
• 1 lime
• 200g caster sugar
• 6 whole cloves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 whole nutmeg, for grating
• 1 vanilla pod
• 2 whole star anise

Method
1. Peel large sections of peel from the clementines, lemon and lime.
2. Put the sugar in a large saucepan over a medium heat, add the pieces of peel and squeeze in the clementine juice.
3. Add the cloves and cinnamon stick, along with about 10 to 12 gratings of nutmeg. Halve the vanilla pod lengthways and add to the pan, then stir in just enough red wine to cover the sugar.
4. Let this simmer until the sugar has completely dissolved into the red wine, then bring to the boil. Keep on a rolling boil for about 4 to 5 minutes, or until you’ve got a thick syrup. This creates a good flavour base, and really lets the sugar and spices infuse the wine. You need to make the syrup base first because it needs to be quite hot, and if you use both bottles of wine too early, it will burn off the alcohol.
5. When your syrup is ready, turn the heat down to low and add the star anise, along with the rest of the wine. Gently heat the wine for around 5 minutes, and then ladle into heatproof glasses to serve.

Read more: Christmas Gift Ideas For The Foodies In Your Life

eat cooking best mulled wine recipes cherry

A “healthier” take on the classic
Similar to our first recipe, this recipe still has the classic flavours everyone knows and loves, but with a slightly lower sugar content. Using a stronger sweetener like maple syrup allows you to use less, compared to using normal white sugar, so we plan on having an extra glass of this one!
Recipe from Hemsley and Hemsley 

Ingredients (serves 4)
• 5 cardamom cloves, crushed
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon or 1 large cinnamon stick
• 4 whole cloves
• 1½ tablespoons maple syrup
• 2 thick slices of a medium orange, including the peel
• 2-inch piece of ginger, roughly chopped
• 1 bottle of red wine
• 2 whole star anise

Method:
1. Put everything, except the red wine and star anise, into a medium saucepan with a cup of water (add more water if your pan is big).
2. Bring to the boil and let it simmer away on a medium heat for 5 to 8 minutes until the water has nearly evaporated.
3. Add the wine and the star anise, reduce the heat and let it all warm through for 5 minutes.
4. Strain (if you like), decorate with fresh cranberries and serve.

eat cooking best mulled wine recipes christmas

Something different
Traditionalists look away now. Not only does this recipe call for white wine instead of the usual red, but it also incorporates a light cider into the mix. A light and fresh take on the seasonal classic, we love the addition of elderflower here.
Recipe from: BBC Good Food

Ingredients (makes about 10 glasses)
• 2 bottles white wine (medium-dry is good)
• 500ml bottle light cider
• 150ml elderflower cordial
• zest 2 lemons (pared into strips using a vegetable peeler)
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1 vanilla pod, split
• 4 to 5 tablespoons caster sugar

Method
1. Put all the ingredients into a pan and heat until steaming but not boiling.
2. Ladle into mugs or glasses to serve, and keep the rest warm on a low heat.

Editor’s Note: This post was originally written in November 2017 by Annie Simpson, and was updated by Team Sassy in December 2018.

Featured Image courtesy of George Dolgikh via Pexel, Image #1 courtesy of Jamie Oliver, Image #2 courtesy of Hannah Pemberton via Unsplash, Image #3 courtesy of Gaby Dyson via Unsplash

more sassy mama

What's New

We're social

We're social

What we're up to and what inspires us