A Taste of the Season

Every once in a while, generally as the need arises or I find that I have some extra time on my hands, I'll try/make up a new recipe or DIY project.  My latest attempt (and this time a success!) was born out of necessity.  After 2 years, we finally used the last of our delicious Williams Sonoma mulling spices - and apple cider season is far from over!

Necessity is the mother of invention. -Plato

Hoping to avoid a trip out to the grocery store, I made my first homemade batch with what we already had on hand - and it was perfect!  Husband approved as well. :)

I began by peeling a whole navel orange - preferable organic, since you'll be using the skin. You want the rind (orange) as well as the pith (white), so don't use a microplane zester or grater. Dice the peel up into little pieces, and then spread it on a baking sheet to dehydrate in the oven at 200 for about an hour. (As an added bonus, your kitchen will smell divine!)

Orange peel diced and ready to go in the oven.

Meanwhile, I set aside approximately equal parts of whole cloves, cinnamon, and cardamom pods.

To break the whole cinnamon sticks, I wrapped them in wax paper and crushed them with my marble rolling pin. A heavy skillet or the flat side of a meat tenderizer would work as well.

Crushing the cinnamon sticks.

If I had allspice, I would have included that in the mix, but like I said, I was using up what was available.

For my batch, each spice measured approximately 1/4 cup.

Once the orange peel is cool, combine and mix all 4 ingredients. Store in an airtight container.

This should last us the rest of the fall!

I'd recommend using anywhere between a teaspoon to tablespoon per cup of apple juice depending on your particular taste. I put 2 Tbsp in a spice infuser for our 2 cups and it had just the right amount of flavour and tartness. My favourite right now is this Trader Joe's organic unfiltered apple juice. 

Do you have a favourite fall recipe or tradition?  I'd love to hear about it or have you share a link below.

Cheers!
Jayne

Ryder builds his chicken tower while Mama is in the kitchen.
So thankful for his new-found independence. :)

Recipe:

Navel Orange - whole peel diced and dehydrated

1/4 cup Whole Cloves

2 Cinnamon Sticks

1/4 Whole Cardamom Pods

Optional - 1/4 cup Allspice Berries