Ingredients
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3 apples, peeled, cored, and halved
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2 lemons, juiced
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6 cups apple cider
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2 cinnamon sticks
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2 whole star anise
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1 teaspoon whole cloves
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1 teaspoon allspice berries
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1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
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Apple brandy, optional for adults
Directions
- Preheat your oven to 250ºF and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a small pairing knife and/or a melon baler, carve different spooky facial expressions into the apple halves. Once carved, dunk the apple faces in the lemon juice so that they will not brown. Transfer the apple faces to the prepared baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven for two hours or until dry to the touch and slightly shrivelled and shrunken.
- Meanwhile, combine the apple cider with the cinnamon, star anise, cloves, allspice, and grated nutmeg in a medium saucepan and place over low heat. Allow the cider to steep for 20 to 30 minutes then remove from the heat, add in the haunted apple heads and serve in mugs with an optional shot of apple brandy for adults.
