Old-Fashioned Wassail with Ball® Canning

What does the word wassail make you think of? For me, I have a few memories but one of the most distinct is singing the “Wassail Song” in my high school’s madrigal choir at Christmas each year. Yes, I was one of those kids.

The song itself derives from the Anglo-Saxon phrase and tradition “waes hael” which means “good health.” The original drink was made from mulled ale, cream, apples, eggs, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, and sugar. This was served like a punch and shared on New Year’s Eve. If you were wealthy, it would be drunk on each of the 12 nights of Christmas. The tradition grew from a celebration of sharing this beloved drink together and was often presented with lots of celebratory embellishments such as caroling, using silver or pewter cauldrons, and the carrying presentation (which is what most madrigal choirs still do!). Below I am sharing a way to make wassail that is a bit easier to drink, but tastes absolutely delicious! No curdled cream in mine, please. This is how we would make it for the big performance!

ingredients & recipe:

• 2 quarts apple cider

• 1 quart cranberry juice

• 46 ounces pineapple juice

• 1 orange, sliced

• 1 inch ginger, thinly sliced

• 20 whole cloves

• 6 cinnamon sticks

• 1 tbsp maple syrup

• DIRECTIONS:

• In a slow cooker, combine all ingredients. Cook on low for 5-6 hours.

• Alternately, to cook over the stovetop, simmer on low for 30 minutes.

• Serve hot garnished with cinnamon sticks and a fresh orange slice in a Ball® Regular Mouth Pint Jar!

• NOTE: Please warm jars in simmering water before pouring hot liquid inside, as it is a thermal shock issue and could potentially cause jars to crack.

I like to make a pot of wassail during the holidays as it reminds me of my ancestral roots in the UK and Ireland, and it also brings back memories of how I spent my holidays when I was younger. When family comes to visit this Christmas, I’ll be serving up hot cups in my Ball® Regular Mouth Pint Jars, which I use for my drinking glasses here at home. I love how versatile they are!

Have you tried wassail?

xoxo Kayla

This post is sponsored by Ball® Canning

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