Cider House Rules

Today's Times has an Op-ed piece about annoying hipsters whose dialogue is comprised wholly of sarcastic jokes and pop culture references. "How awful." Worldwide commented. "True that, Schleprock." I thought, arching an eyebrow to substitute for civil discourse.

Cider has been a big star around the house this month. The Gs like it hot and cold, and I've also made mulled wine for Worldwide, combining cider and red wine in equal parts, with some mulling spices (cinnamon, allspice, cloves, nutmeg), a little brown sugar and lemon juice in a pot and heating it through.

Yesterday we made a delicious berry mango smoothie with a cider base, and today I made a very nice carrot and sweet potato soup for lunch, which we enjoyed with grilled cheese sandwiches on the honey wheat bread I made yesterday. I finished the soup (this version was vegetarian for the BG, but you could use chicken stock instead) with a little cider and lemon juice, and the results were, I venture, worth sharing.

Saute 1 large onion, chopped in olive oil over med/low heat for about 5 minutes, until translucent. Add 3 carrots, chopped into small pieces, and saute for 3 more minutes. Add 2 cloves of garlic, minced, and a marble size piece of ginger, minced, and saute for 30 seconds. Add 4 cups of vegetable stock, a couple of pinches of salt, a pinch of cayenne and a tbs of orange zest. Simmer for ten minutes, until the carrots are tender.

Puree the soup in a blender. Return puree to pot and add 2 carrots and 1 sweet potato, peeled and sliced into bite size pieces. Simmer for ten minutes until the potatoes and carrots are tender. Add 1/2 cup of cider, a splash of lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.

Hey Hipsters, remember when Pebbles and Bamm Bamm had their own show?