Project Description
Full Recipe in Details
This week I have been inspired by the snow falling in the hills all around us, The Dandenong’s and Mt Macedon to name a few! It’s that time of the year when a delicious and warm Mulled Cider or Gluhwein really hits the spot….combine this with some delicious Roasted Walnuts and your favourite TV show, and Winter suddenly seems cosy, warm and not so bad!
I have included our local 2 brothers breweries, Hot Mulled Cider recipe below, as well as a few options on how to roast your Walnuts. If you prefer, feel free to de-shell and eat them non-roasted too.
Locally brewed Mulled Cider
INGREDIENTS
1 -2 litres good-quality local apple or pear cider (or both!)
1/2 cup good quality red wine
6 cloves
2-3 star anise
¼ nutmeg, finely grated into the pan
1 cinnamon stick
juice of 1 oranges, another ½ orange sliced and added to the mixture (push the cloves into these)
3–4 tablespoons sugar (or malt syrup for a sugar free option)
1 vanilla pod, halved (or a dash of vanilla essence) – optional
1 pomegranate, juice and seeds of (optional)
GUIDE / INSTRUCTIONS
Pour the cider into a large pan on a low heat and let it warm through for a few minutes. Add all the spices and juices and turn the heat up.
Once almost boiling, turn down to a simmer and leave for 5–8 minutes. As everything infuses you’ll get delicious layers of flavour.
Taste it and add sugar or malt syrup to taste. You don’t want it sweet; you just want the sugar to join the spices in a harmonious taste.
When you’re happy with the flavours, ladle into glasses or mugs and serve hot or warm with some roasted walnuts!
Toasting walnuts brings out their divine earthy flavour (and minimizes the bitterness of raw walnuts). There are two ways to toast walnuts, they both work very well, but they both require close attention – walnuts go from being beautifully toasted to being burnt in the blink of an eye!
Toasting Walnuts In the Oven
Preheat oven to 200. Lay shelled walnuts on a baking sheet (you can line it with foil or parchment paper for easy clean-up).
Roast walnuts until they start to brown and smell toasted, between 5 to 10 minutes.
Toasting Walnuts On the Stove
Heat a large frying pan over medium high heat. Add walnuts to the hot, dry pan and cook, watching constantly and stirring frequently, until walnuts starts to brown and they smell toasted, about 5 minutes.
Health benefits of Walnuts – a truly amazing tree nut.
Researchers are convinced, more than ever before, about the nutritional benefits of walnuts when consumed in whole form, including the skin. We now know that approximately 90% of the phenols in walnuts are found in the skin, including key phenolic acids, tannins, and flavonoids. The form of vitamin E found in walnuts is somewhat unusual, and particularly beneficial. Instead of having most of its vitamin E present in the alpha-tocopherol form, walnuts provide an unusually high level of vitamin E in the form of gamma-tocopherol. Particularly in studies on the cardiovascular health of men, this gamma-tocopherol form of vitamin E has been found to provide significant protection from heart problems.
Phytonutrient research on the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits of walnuts has moved this food further and further up the ladder of foods that are protective against metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular problems, and type 2 diabetes. Some phytonutrients found in walnuts—for example, the quinone juglone—are found in virtually no other commonly-eaten foods. Other phytonutrients—like the tannin tellimagrandin or the flavonol morin—are also rare and valuable as antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients. These anti-inflammatory and antioxidant phytonutrients also help explain the decreased risk of certain cancers—including prostate cancer and breast cancer—in relationship to walnut consumption.
NOTES
Have a super week ahead and enjoy eating well and staying healthy!