One of the many fall highlights for us is the start of apple cider season. There’s just something about it that fits perfectly with the crispness of the air, the vibrant colors of the leaves, and the smells that accompany the changing of the seasons. It’s equally delicious enjoyed cold and fresh or served warm, mulled with spices. Because of its deliciousness versatility, we also figured that it would be delicious transformed into apple cider jello.
Safe to say, apple cider jello has become a new favorite.
We’ve had a busier than normal summer. I think I’m okay with it though. I had an epiphany shortly before the Fourth of July weekend, and realized that, 1) summer is pretty short around here, 2) winter is pretty long around here, and 3) most of the winter that comes between January 2 and May kinda sucks, so therefore, we should live it up while we can.
Okay, maybe I didn’t just suddenly realize that winters are long in Ohio, since I’ve lived here for my entire life; I just had a perspective shift. Must be getting old… or this past winter just sucked extra. Either way, I like this new philosophy, and I think we’ll try to stick with it every summer, polar vortex or not.
Since that “a-ha” moment, we’ve gone back to North Carolina:
DISCLAIMER: This post has nothing at all to do with my normal topics of conversation, and is merely a rant about the weather patterns of northeast Ohio. Read at your own peril.
Ahh, the sight of a fresh blanket of white covering all as you glance out your window in the morning…
Is met with much less derision come December, not October 24. I mean, I know it’s Cleveland, and we’re in the snow-belt, blah-blah-blah, but really? Eight inches of lake-effect slop for the first snow of the year (and potentially still counting)? It’s supposed to be a light covering that melts by midday, just to kinda give everyone a heads-up “hey, it’s that time of year again, better put on your winter face.” At least give me some time to get used to it again. Not just me, but everything. C and I saw a huge ‘V’ of geese out in the snowstorm, honking loudly and looking rather bewildered as they headed south. I’m pretty sure they were thinking, “Wait’ll we hit South Carolina and find that lousy travel agent who wouldn’t book our flight for yesterday… said we had nothing to worry about…”
Homemade ice cream is really, really easy. We rediscovered this fact earlier in the year, and have been making it regularly ever since. I don’t know why we didn’t make it very often in years past, but we’re certainly making up for lost time!
The key (as with anything) lies with the ingredients. We found a local source of grass-grazed cream, starting getting our own pastured eggs from the backyard, and use a little of our raw honey, maple syrup, or organic sugar. Add a splash of real vanilla extract, and that’s about it. Your homemade ice cream still has a lot of calories, so I won’t go as far as calling it a health food (though it’s good for mental health :)), but using REAL ingredients (and not using much of what is in commercial ice cream… sodium benzoate or benzyl acetate with that cherry on top?) puts it miles ahead of most anything you’d find in a store. So dig in, and don’t feel guilty.
Real Homemade Ice Cream Base
3 cups grass-grazed cream
3 pastured eggs
1/2 cup raw honey or organic sugar (or other sweetener)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Add everything to a medium bowl and whisk together for a minute, until the eggs are mixed in and the sugar dissolves. (You don’t even need the eggs; they just add a little richness.) Pour into your fancy ice cream maker and let it go for about 30 minutes, or until it’s a nice, creamy, milkshake-like consistency. If it’s still a little too soft for your liking, put it into another container and pop it in the freezer for another hour. And really, that’s it – homemade ice cream. Yum.
The recipe above is for a basic vanilla. If you’re like us, you’ll get bored with that and want to experiment. (For any add-ins, wait until the ice cream starts to thicken up before tossing them into the machine.) Here’s some of what we’ve tried this summer:
Add 1/2 cup cocoa powder to the base, then a few spoonfuls of peanut butter at the end
Mix in some fresh blackberries and chopped walnuts
Fresh peaches and homemade graham crackers (like peach pie a la mode on a spoon!)
Puree some fresh strawberries and add to the base
Add half a can of coconut milk, a few tablespoons of peanut butter, some toasted coconut, and a pinch of cayenne
1/2 cup cocoa powder, toasted pecans, and homemade caramel
Crushed pistachios
And the next one to try, maybe tonight – swap out the honey for maple syrup and crumble some bacon!
The possibilities are endless, as is the fun you’ll have testing the new combinations!
Happy birthday to C (yesterday)! After weeks of being “so excited to turn three” he can finally hold up that next finger. Must be nice to count your age on one hand, and not six 🙂
To celebrate, we had a fun party at Squire’s Castle, which happened to coincide nicely with his desire for dragons and princesses at his party. No clue where he came up with that idea, but it worked out. The weather was perfect, the cake was yummy, and he got to play all afternoon long, which is all you can ask for when you’re three.
They grow up so fast.
Our little prince.Getting ready to slay the awesome dragon pinata that his aunt made.
