Hot Mulled Cider

Slice the orange
Be sure an adult is nearby to help.

Put the orange on a cutting board and use a knife to slice it crosswise to make 8 thick slices.

Combine the ingredients
Choose whether you want apple juice or cranberry juice cocktail for your hot drink. Combine your juice of choice, the cinnamon sticks and the cloves in a saucepan.

Warm the mixture
Place the saucepan over medium heat and warm the juice until tiny bubbles appear around the edges of the pan. Simmer gently for 20 minutes, reducing the heat as needed to keep the juice from boiling. Remove the pan from the heat.

Serve the cider
Place 1 orange slice in each mug. Ask an adult to help you ladle the hot cider over the orange slices.

Decorate the edge of each mug with a second orange slice. First cut a slit into the center of the orange slice and then place it over the rim of the mug. Serve immediately. Serves 4.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Sweet Treats, by Carolyn Beth Weil (Simon & Schuster, 2006).