hard cider

Planning to make some hard cider. The plan is to take a gallon of cider, heat it on the stove, and dissolve a three pound bag of malt extract into it. Then that along with four more gallons of cider will go into the primary, along with a scoop of sludge from the lager I will be putting into a keg today. I will then add potassium sorbate according to the directions when fermentation is complete, sweeten to taste, and then force carbonate in a keg. Any thoughts?

Why malt extract?  If you are looking for a higher ABV, brown sugar works great!

I have found that boosting alcohol with refined sugar can result in an unpleasant aftertaste. Besides, extract will add flavor.

At the moment most of the fermentation has subsided, and now the apple solids are settling onto the yeast cake. I plan to rack it next weekend.