Hot Apple Cider with Peach Rum

Last week, I posted about our dinner at Great Sage Organic Green Cuisine & I mentioned that the Bup had the Fireside Orchard to drink. It's been on our minds ever since, so I decided to try to replicate it.

I knew we had a random bottle of peach rum somewhere, & when I found it, I realized it had just enough to make us each 1 drink. Perfect!

To keep the cider from losing it's edge, I did not bring it to a boil. As soon as it started to steam, I turned off the heat & stirred in the rum. If you prefer your cider to have a smoother taste, you may want to boil it briefly.

I love the way the peach plays off the apple in this drink. It tastes just like summer mixed with fall, with the juicy peach & the crisp apple flavors blending perfectly.

This would make a great after dinner drink for with Thanksgiving dinner! It's light & warming, perfect for settling down with while visiting with family & friends, or for wrapping your hands around after coming in from the cold.

Hot Apple Cider with Peach Rum

Serves 2

2 c apple cider

1/4 c peach rum

2 cinnamon sticks

In a small pan over medium heat, warm the cider. When it starts to steam, remove from heat to prevent boiling. (This should take about 5 minutes.) Stir in peach rum. Divide evenly between 2 glasses or mugs & garnish with cinnamon sticks. Enjoy immediately - that's an order! :-)

Happy Thanksgiving! 

Peach, Walnut & Roasted Beet Salad

I'm going to be the master of the obvious here & tell you that it's been hot lately. Super hot. That means I'm less motivated to make heavy dinners & really into anything I don't have to actually cook.

Of course, I have turned the oven on a few times. I had to roast the beets for this salad, for example. But I made it worthwhile by making Hot Chocolate Cookies at the same time! It was a win-win situation. Then I stored the beets in the fridge so they were ready for me to put on salads throughout the week.

I was super excited to pull my beets. We thinned them a few weeks ago & I got just enough to have for one meal. Last weekend we pulled the rest (I was sweating like crazy out there!). There were 4 that had some surface damage, so I cleaned those right away & roasted the good parts.

I wasn't sure whether we'd just toss them on salads or if I'd do something special with them, but I came across a recipe on the Whole Foods site that was just begging to have them on it. We ate outside for the first time in weeks, happy to enjoy the fresh air & the crisp flavors.

I hope you're staying cool. We usually go for a nice bike ride on Saturday mornings, but this week we cut it short to 4 miles. It was too hot! We stopped at the producers-only farm market on the way home & got lettuce, peaches, corn on the cob, & zucchini. I can't wait to see what they have to offer next weekend!

Peach, Walnut & Roasted Beet Salad

Inspired & Adapted from Whole Foods

Serves 2 as the main course or 4 as side salads

Dressing:

1/4 c walnuts, toasted
1 large peach, chopped
2 T lime juice (or more to taste)

Salad:
1/2 head green leaf lettuce, washed & torn into pieces

1/2 head red leaf lettuce, washed & torn into pieces

1 peach, sliced
2 radishes, thinly sliced
1/2 cucumber, thinly sliced

2 beets, roasted - follow these instructions, just use only red beets - can be done ahead of time

Blend dressing ingredients in a food processor or high-powered blender until smooth. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Divide lettuces evenly between bowls/plates. Top with remaining ingredients, divided evenly. Drizzle with dressing & serve immediately. Alternatively, serve with dressing on the side & allow each person to add their own, to taste. (We didn't use all of the dressing for our 2 salads. There was enough left for at least 1 more salad.)

Notes:

- Beets can be roasted a day or two before making the salad. Store in the refrigerator.

- Dressing will keep for about 4 days. You can make it ahead of time & store in the refrigerator. This is good to do if you like your dressing cold because if you make it fresh it will be warm or room temperature.

1/4 c walnuts, toasted

What I Ate Wednesday

I'm joining the party this week!   For breakfast:

 
Zucchini Bread Oatmeal - I made this last night from a recipe on OhSheGlows.com. It didn't taste exactly like zucchini bread but it was similar and I love having veggies in my breakfast but not tasting them! (Kinda like a Green Smoothie!) I added a peach & a spoonful of pb.  
Plus a mug of Pomegranate White Tea from my favorites store, Trader Joe's! For lunch:  Massaged kale salad w/ EVOO, balsalmic vinegar, garlic powder & s&p, plus carrots & chickpeas. On the side, a slice of homemade cinnamon raisin bread topped with peanut butter. For snacks:  

 Pineapple in the morning and a peach in the afternoon! For dinner:

 Guacamole & Bruschetta (by Mckensie & Dan, our fabulous hosts!), Kale chips (we brought these), & Yuengling Lager (from Charis).  Thanks for hosting us! You made my What I Ate Wednesday post so much more interesting!  

Peaches 'n Fluff

Let's talk about peaches.

Fresh, juicy peaches.

Ooey gooey marshmallow fluff fruit dip.

Crunchy graham cracker crumbs.

Together.

Bliss.



My mom makes a fresh peach dessert that I love. It's one of those once a year (maybe twice if you're lucky)  desserts because for it to be good, it needs ripe peaches. The in-season kind that dribble down your chin and arm when you eat them. I remember coming home from school and Mom would have a bowl of peach halves cleaned and waiting on the table. I'd eat the whole bowl. It was usually at least 4 peaches at a time, and they were wonderful. I miss that! Now I have to clean my own and they just don't quite taste the same.

Mom, are you reading this? Can you have a bowl of peaches for me next time I come over?




Back to this dessert. It had a really hard to remember name: "Peach Dessert." The first time I saw the recipe I was devastated. No wonder I didn't like that one layer! It had a raw egg in it. Yikes. No, what I loved was the way the peach juice saturated the graham cracker crumbs and made them just perfect. Then the creaminess of the whipped cream brought everything together. But that custardy layer I could do without.



So last year I tried to recreate it without the custard. I used all the same ingredients otherwise, but for some reason it wasn't right. The graham crackers didn't change into peach deliciousness like they were suppose to.



This morning, I had a revelation. I have leftover Fluff Fruit Dip! I substituted that for the whipped cream and it was peach heaven. I'm renaming the dessert and never using whipped cream again.

Ok, so I would totally eat this if Mom made it the original way. She doesn't use the raw egg anymore.



Peaches 'n Fluff
Serves 2 (or 1 hungry girl!)

4 peaches, sliced*
1/2 c graham cracker crumbs
1/2 c Fluff Fruit Dip (or about 2 T cream cheese + 8 T marshmallow fluff)**

In a medium bowl (with lid, if possible), layer ingredients. Start with half of the graham cracker crumbs. Next add 2 of the peaches. Pour on half of the Fluff Fruit Dip. Repeat, reserving about 1 T of graham cracker crumbs and a few peach slices for decoration. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour to allow the flavors to meld and the peach juice to work it's magic on the graham cracker crumbs.

*This works best of you slice the peaches over the dessert while you're making it. The juices drip onto the graham cracker crumbs instead of being wasted on the cutting board. As always, be very careful when using a sharp knife with wet hands!

**I haven't tried it yet but I think you could just use marshmallow fluff alone. It would be a little sweeter, but definitely delicious!

Peaches n' Fluff