Mulling Spices make a great homemade holiday gift and this Mulling Spices Blend is particularly festive. Mulling spices can be used for both mulling wine as well as apple cider. I’m a fan of mulled wine using a bold wine, like a zinfandel or a grenache. You can also mull white wine.
My special blend has a very fruit-forward flavor, achieved by including dried hibiscus flowers and dried orange rind. I also added in juniper berries, leftover from the last time I made my own pickling spices. Cardamom seeds, cloves, cinnamon and star anise round out the mix.
Mulling Spices Blend
3 tablespoons juniper berries
2 tablespoons whole cardamom seeds
2 tablespoons dried hibiscus flowers
2 tablespoons dried orange peel
2 tablespoons whole cloves
2 whole cinnamon sticks, broken into small pieces
5 whole star anise pods, broken into smaller pieces
Combine all the ingredients and keep in an airtight jar. Use 1 tablespoon per glass of mulled wine or cider.
To mull wine or cider, place the mulling spice blend in a tea infuser. Place the tea infuser in a small saucepan with wine or cider. Bring just to a simmer and then remove from the heat. Remove the tea infuser. Serve in mugs with cinnamon sticks for garnish. Enjoy!
