Fall is around the corner, and there’s nothing I look forward to more than my annual trip to an apple orchard. There’s something so whimsical and child-like about wandering through rows of apple trees, reaching up to pluck the perfect one, and filling your basket until it overflows with crisp, juicy apples. The excitement of the hunt always gets the better of me, and without fail, I return home with far more apples than any reasonable person could consume before they start to go bad.

Standing in my kitchen, surrounded by too many bags of apples in various shades of red, green and gold, I’m faced with the dilemma of should I bake pies? Make applesauce? Make apple butter? Make apple chips? The possibilities seem endless, yet the clock is ticking on these seemingly fresh babies.

While we will explore all of the options in another edit, this one is all about a fall fave: homemade hot apple cider. Nothing captures the essence of fall quite like a piping hot mug of spiced apple cider, warming your hands and filling your home with an intoxicating aroma of cinnamon, cloves and sweet apples. The best part? Our recipe is surprisingly simple to make and requires minimal active preparation.

Keep reading ahead as we get into it all.

The Perfect Easy Apple Cider Recipe: