Mulled Pomegranate Orange Sipper--A "Simple Saturday Sipper" for Fall

I am so ready for fall!!! I know what you are thinking..."What does the person in Hawaii have to whine and complain about?" Yes, normally it is paradise here but tomorrow is November and it has been more like summer--hot and humid for well over two weeks now. Also Vog (sulfer dioxide, other gases and crud from Kīlauea, our active volcano on The Big Island) has filled the air this week and it triggers my allergies and asthma and frankly it all makes me GRUMPY! I want a nice crisp, cool fall day--heck, I'll take a cold, rainy fall day even. The kind of day where one can curl up on the couch without feeling sticky. A cozy blanket kind of day with a good book and a nice warm fall drink. Our trade winds just started coming back yesterday, the air is getting clearer and the temperature slightly cooler and so I wasted no time "getting my fall on" last night by making this autumn-feeling Mulled Pomegranate Orange Sipper in the November/December issue of Clean Eating magazine.

Clean Eating says: "Nutritional Bonus: Pomegranate is an excellent source of potassium, an essential mineral that support kidney function, and is also an energy-supplying electrolyte."

Mulled Pomegranate Orange Sipper

Clean Eating, Nov/Dec 2009

(Makes 4 6-oz Servings)

2 cups unsweetened pomegranate juice

Peel from 1 orange

1/2 cup fresh orange juice (from about 2 oranges)

1/2 cup water

2 cinnamon sticks

6 whole cloves

2 tsp raw organic honey

Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepot over medium heat. Cover pot and simmer for at least 20 minutes. Strain cinnamon sticks and cloves from liquid and divide mulled juice into mugs. Serve with or without orange peels pieces in beverage, as garnish.

Nutrients per 6-oz serving: Calories: 100, Total Fat: 0g, Sat. Fat: 0g, Carbs: 24g, Fiber: 0, Sugars: 15g, Protein: 1g, Sodium: 15mg, Cholesterol: Omg

Notes/Results: Bright, tangy and comforting it instantly put me in a fall frame of mind (even if I did end up drinking it in shorts and a tank top sitting in front of my fan!). The drink's combination of pomegranate and orange with the cinnamon and cloves is delicious and the small amount of honey sweetens it just enough. A definite make again recipe--especially since they are saying we may get our first "winter chill" by the end of next week. (Of course it's all relative--here that just means shorts and a tee shirt and no fan!) ;-)

Happy Halloween and Happy Weekend!