Caitríona Redmond: How to use a slow cooker to make my mulled wine and hot chocolate recipes 

My slow cooker is my secret weapon when it comes to festive hot drinks writes Caitríona Redmond

Mulled wine in white metal mugs with cinnamon, spices and orange on concrete background, traditional drink on winter holiday. Copy space for text

We are getting so close to Christmas now, this day next week is Christmas Eve and the pressure is building.

Sometimes I feel filled with excitement for a few days off and enjoying time with the kids and others I feel an impending sense of dread when I see the news and worry about the future. 

Then I remind myself this is all perfectly normal and try to focus on the positives.

The best thing about the Christmas season? For me, it’s not the food, even though there is plenty of it to go around; it’s the hot drinks.

For alcoholic drinks, I generally defer to Leslie Williams for his expertise. Still, it’s the time of the year for hot chocolates and mulled wines or juices, honey and lemon, and a particular favourite of mine, hot port.

When you’re feeling cold or under the weather, a warm beverage is the drink of choice to heat you from the inside out. 

A thermos with blackcurrant cordial is probably the nicest non-alcoholic drink after you come to shore from a cold water dip. At home, I reach for a cup of tea before putting the heating on, which ekes out a little bit longer from the boiler and my budget.

Hot drinks feel extravagant. There’s an enveloping hug from the inside out when you take that first sip. Your fingers thaw from cupping a warm mug or glass and when sharing a hot beverage with friends and family there’s a brightness and cheeriness in the air.

Small wonder carol singers used to be offered mulled wine from door to door, and they developed progressively rosier cheeks the more carols they sang! 

This is something I should have paid far more attention to several years ago when I lost the run of myself and downed mulled wine like it was a glass of lemonade. The less said about the following day the better!

The beauty of mulling a drink is that you don’t need to use expensive alcohol. I don’t recommend it because mulling adds so many layers of flavour.

Keep your special vintage drinks to be enjoyed solo, and use cheap and cheerful wines and spirits. 

Use what you have open (if at all) and if you decide to buy any new ingredients make sure they are on the thrifty side of the budget.

So that you’re not skimming whole cloves or cardamom off the top of your pot or cooker, I recommend you either stud them into pieces of citrus fruit, you can also place your loose spices into a muslin cloth bag or tea strainer.

My secret weapon when it comes to keeping drinks warm is my slow cooker. It’s not just for making main meals.

A slow cooker will keep your drinks at an even temperature over long periods of time, using up a tiny amount of energy, and frees up space on the hob for anything else you might like to drink.

Slow cooker Mulled Wine

Making mulled wine is more about warming the ingredients through, don’t bring this wintery beverage to a boil

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 1 hours 30 mins

Total Time

 1 hours 35 mins

Course

 Dessert

Cuisine

 Irish

Ingredients

• 100ml port

• 1 bottle red wine

• 2 large oranges

• 2 large apples

• 2 cinnamon sticks

• 2 pieces of star anise

• 3 cloves

• 2 all-spice berries

• 1 generous glug of brandy

• 2 tbsp honey

Method

1. Place all the ingredients into a slow cooker set to low.

2. Stir well and cover for 90 minutes.

3. Once warm through, serve immediately in mugs and enjoy.

4. Alternatively, poor the warm mulled wine into a thermos flask and bring on a bracing walk in the cold winter’s air, or even take it carol singing!

Slow cooker hot chocolate

recipe by:Caitriona Redmond 

By using a slow cooker set to low to make your hot chocolate there’s no risk of scorching the milk and the contents are at the perfect temperature to melt real chocolate, something that normally takes a lot of effort to do.

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 2 hours 0 mins

Total Time

 2 hours 5 mins

Course

 Dessert

Cuisine

 Irish

Ingredients

• 150g milk chocolate, roughly chopped

• 150g dark chocolate, roughly chopped

• 1 litre of milk (of your choice)

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 200ml cream (optional)

• To serve:

• Marshmallows

• Baileys (optional)

• Cocoa powder

Method

1. Place the ingredients into a slow cooker set to low. Stir well. Place the lid on and cook for an hour.

2. After an hour stir again and then cook for a further hour or until the chocolate is melted.

3. Once the chocolate is melted whisk well to introduce a lovely fluffy froth. Serve with marshmallows and/or a nip of baileys for an extra kick.

Money Saving Tips

You might have heard me mention on occasion that it’s important to value your own time.

If you’re finding things difficult this season consider yourself the gift. Not in an ironic, emblazoned across your jumper manner, but more in a way that you can contribute meaningfully to celebrations without bringing expensive gifts.

I am writing on behalf of hosts everywhere when I say there is just as much value in a guest who gets stuck in with the washing up as there is in a guest who brings a bottle of wine. 

You will be appreciated just as much, maybe more.