Spiced apple cider is such a classic holiday beverage. It tastes great, makes the whole house smell good...but did you know that 1 cup of this stuff contains close to 30 grams of sugar?! Ouch. That's not very helpful for maintaining balanced blood sugar, a strong immune system or a trim waistline.
Using the recipe for fresh ginger tea from local Ayurvedic chef Talya Lutzker's cookbook as a base, I came up with a delicious and healthy alternative to traditional spiced apple cider.
Witch's Brew
- 4 cups filtered water
- 2 inches fresh ginger root, peeled and cut into thin slices
- 1 organic medium-sized apple (pick your favorite sweet apple), cut into medium slices
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon or 1 cinnamon stick
- 1/4 tsp clove
- 1 tsp raw honey (optional in mug)
- 1/2 tsp grass-fed ghee (clarified butter)
Bring all ingredients to a simmer in a medium pot for 15 minutes. Serve in small mugs (serves 4). Add ghee and stir well. The ghee gives it fuller body and sweetens it slightly. For additional sweetness, add a teaspoon of raw honey to your mug. Adding a teaspoon of raw honey only adds 4 grams of sugar, a dramatic difference to other ciders.
Witch's Brew is also great for strengthening digestion (ginger and cinnamon).
If cooking really isn't your thing and you'd still like to enjoy a low-sugar holiday beverage, New Leaf Community Markets has several comparable options at their juice bar/cafe including a chai (a water rather than tea-based chai, which tastes similar to the Witch's Brew).
Happy Halloween!
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