The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

Boiled Apple Cider

Sugarowl's picture
Sugarowl

Boiled Apple Cider

I recently purchased some boiled apple cider form King Arthur. They are having a "buy one get one half off" sale right now. I had never heard of it until recently when browsing their recipes. Do you just add it to your bread/muffins like an extract? I'd do an apple pie, but I don't like the texture of cooked apples.

I saw this recipe and it's on my to-bake list now (despite the apples, but it'll make a good gift). https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/apple-cider-oatmeal-bread-recipe Do you think it can be made in a bread pan, or does it need a dutch oven?

And I know I'm over thinking this, but for some reason, I'm thinking a bit of rye would be lovely in this. Rye and apples just sound really good.

Debra Wink's picture
Debra Wink

Hi Sugarowl,

I made my own for Christmas gifts one year from my favorite unfiltered apple cider and here's what I put on the tag:

Use a tablespoon or two to flavor plain yogurt or oatmeal, as a topping for ice cream or bread pudding, as a syrup for pancakes and waffles (as is or mixed with maple syrup). Add up to 1/4 cup to your apple pie filling or buttercream frosting. Once you taste it, you'll probably find other uses for it.

For recipes and inspiration go to:  Search | King Arthur Baking boiled cider recipes

I use up most of mine swirled into Greek yogurt, but check out the KA search. They have a lot of recipes that use it and those can serve as examples of how much and where you might add it to your own.

That apple cider oatmeal bread looks good; unfortunately I don't have an answer to your question about the pan, but if you add rye to this it should probably be in place of oats rather than the high gluten flour. Here is a rye bread that I saw:

Boiled Cider Rye Bread Recipe | King Arthur Baking

Enjoy the cider and have fun with it,
dw

Sugarowl's picture
Sugarowl

Thanks for the ideas. I had seen the King Arthur recipes, but was looking for more of a general rule of thumb of how to include it in other recipes. I understand it's stronger, but I've never cooked with it and it's not cheap ($16.95 for a bottle). At least it was on sale so I got two!

Kudos to you for making your own though. I thought about doing that, but with the mess I made making apple butter one year, my husband was less than thrilled at the idea this year. I figure I'd buy it first to see it if it was worth it to make it. I may still make apple butter this year though, but I'll just have to be less messy about it. ;)

Debra Wink's picture
Debra Wink

I think it's harder to give a general rule in baking because it will change the pH of your cake and quick bread batters, which may mean adjusting your chemical leaveners and/or bake temperatures as well. The extra water may or may not be a problem for those things but could significantly change the texture in something like a cookie. With two bottles you'll have enough to experiment with --- maybe cut your recipe batches in half or smaller to conserve your ingredients until you have it tweaked or know it's going to work the way that you want.

I bought a bottle from KA the first time too to see what it was like years ago. And it's a concentrated flavor of whatever variety of apple the cider was pressed from. So, if you start with a different cider, you will get a different flavor. If you make your own in the future start with a cider you really like. It takes a gallon to make 2 cups. It's not hard or messy although it takes all day when simmering gently, and if you go too far beyond that (as in not watching closely enough toward the end), it starts turning into caramel which isn't necessarily bad, but is very thick and tough to work with.

Be adventurous :)

rondayvous's picture
rondayvous

I use it as a sweetener, the acid in it helps with chemically leavened doughs.

Sugarowl's picture
Sugarowl

I didn't know it was acidic. That's good to know. I'll try it in some muffins when it gets here (hopefully next week).

Another Girl's picture
Another Girl

This recipe for rye apple bundt cake may or may not appeal to you, but it came to mind when you mentioned possibly using rye with your boiled cider.