Apple Cider Mocktail
Based on an original cocktail I made for a charitable pop up themed after the movie, "The Craft". It was essentially an Appleton 12 year rum old fashioned, heavy in the bitters with a cider reduction and a brûléed dried apple. This version is migraine-friendly. I love making this at work. It smells so cozy and always grabs people's attention. If I'm making this for entertaining, I'll often make the syrup right before people arrive so the aroma is still in the air as the cocktail is being sipped.Orgeat, typically made of from almonds or other nuts, serves as a sweetener and thickener for most cocktails. I was really worried about this mocktail becoming too thin without a spirit, but the sunflower orgeat adds an almost sily texture to this cocktail.- KT
Servings: 1 person
Ingredients
- ¼ oz sunflower orgeat *recipe below
- ¼ oz apple cider reduction *recipe below
- 2 oz double strength rooibos tea *see recipe for how to make double strength
- 1 cup water
- apple slices and fresh black pepper for garnish
- Optional- 1 oz vodka or blanco tequila
Sunflower Orgeat
- ½ cup unsalted sunflower seeds
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup water
Apple Cider Reduction
- 40 oz apple juice *I prefer Martinelli's
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- 10 whole allspice
- 5 whole cloves
Instructions
- For the apple cider reduction - Put all ingredients in saucepan. Bring to a gentle boil and reduce until 10 oz. of liquid remains. Turn off heat, stir in 4 oz. of sugar until dissolved and let cool. Strain out spices.
- Meanwhile, lightly toast the seeds in a small saucepan, shaking it occasionally. When you start to notice the aroma, they are probably good. Add the water and turn up the heat until it's at a gentle rolling boil. Stir in the sugar until it's dissolved. Turn off the heat and let cool.
- Transfer this sunflower seed mixture into a blender. Pulse/blend until the seeds are mostly broken up. Strain the orgeat using a wire mesh colander or maybe several layers of cheese cloth. The resulting liquid is technically a suspension so it will separate if left to sit for a while. This is totally okay. Just give it a quick shake before you use it. You just want to get all of the pulp out so the texture is silky and not grainy.
- Brew the tea at double strength to account for any spirit that might be added. This means using twice the amount of recommended tea and steeping for the normal recommended time. Allow everything to cool to at least room temperature.
- Measure ingredients into a rocks glass, stir for a few seconds, garnish with a thinly sliced wedge of apple and a little freshly cracked black pepper.
Notes
- You get way more bang for your buck if you buy loose leaf from the bulk section. Don't let the price on the side of the jar scare you. It was a little less than $5 for me to make enough for 10 cocktails. I have also tried Republic of Tea's Decaf British Breakfast tea with great results for caffeine sensitive folks. The dryer the tea, the better the flavor. Here rooibos, which is naturally decaffeinated, is the best option for those on a migraine diet.
- A more tart apple slice for the garnish will provide a good balance of acid to sweet with this cocktail and also compliment the sharpness of the cracked black pepper.