News Flash...We're in!!!

We had a most awesome weekend, and I just have to share it with you!
Sheffield Cider was asked to do sample tastings at all the Metropolitan Markets in the Seattle area. My husband and I had the pleasure of visiting two of their stores, and his brothers and their wives handled the other four stores in the Seattle area.  NOT only were we impressed with how beautiful the stores were, we thoroughly enjoyed meeting the management!  They are so excited to have our product in their stores, and were very gracious and accommodating with anything we needed.  It was so nice to have the "red carpet" rolled out to us.  They have chosen our cider as "the favorite pick of the season for the Thanksgiving table".  On Monday, our cider was hi-lighted on the New Day NW show in Seattle.  A clip from their show:   click here

We are totally excited with this news!  Here are some pictures from that weekend.

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Thick and Hearty Beef Stew

There is nothing in this world like a rich, beefy stew on a cold winters day!  It's one of those comfort foods that you just can't get away from. It's kind of like your grandmother ingrained it in your mother that stew was the only food that would warm you up, like your favorite quilt.  At any rate, I wanted to share with you my version of beef stew...with a twist.  I tried our Cherry Cider in it and it was simply amazing - just a touch of sweetness to enhance the beef flavor.  It's kinda the same idea when you add brown sugar to hamburger to caramelize and awaken the flavor.  I am so pleased with the result, that it will be a mainstay in my recipe- I  hope you like it too!
Beef Stew
2 Tbl. canola oil
2 lbs. stew beef, cut into 1 1/2 chunks
4 cloves of fresh garlic, 3 left whole and 1 minced
1 medium onion, cut into slivers
8 pearl onions, peeled and left whole
3 Tbl. flour
1 Tbl. Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste
1 Bay leaf
1 1/2 tsp. Thyme
3 rounded tsp. of Better than Bouillon Beef Base
3 cups warm water
1 cup Cherry Cider
1 cup celery, cut into chunky slices
1 1/2 cups carrots, cut into 1/2 - 3/4 inch chunks 
2 cups potatoes, 3/4 inch chunks
8 large sized white button or crimini type mushrooms, sliced in half
Saute the beef chunks in oil in a dutch oven pot on the stove until browned on the outside.  Remove from pot and set aside.  Add the sliced onions, whole pearl onions, whole garlic, and sliced mushrooms and brown in the meat drippings until caramelized brown.  Add the crushed clove of garlic and stir for 1 minute more.  I like to add some of the cider at this point and stir into the saute process with the onion mix.  It helps with the carmelization step, plus it smells heavenly!  Add the browned beef chunks back into the pot and toss with the Worcestershire sauce.  Salt and pepper to your liking- I prefer the fresh ground because it just tastes better.  Scrape the bottom of the pan to loosen up the cooked-on meat and onion scrapings- they add a lot of richness to the stew. Toss in the flour with all this goodness, until well coated; take off the burner.  Make your beef base with the 3 cups of warm water and stir into the pot.  Season with the Thyme and add the Bay leaf.  Pour in the rest of your cup of cider, and add the chunked celery and carrots.  Don't add the potatoes until the last hour of baking.  Stir and cover with dutch oven lid and place into a 350 degree oven and bake for 3-4 hours. 
During the last hour, carefully open the dutch oven lid and check the gravy amount. You might have to add a bit more water if it is absorbed out, but be careful because you want your stew to be thick. (You could add some more cider, but you need to taste it to see if the sweetness is to your liking).  Carefully stir in the additional liquid if needed, so as not to break up too much of the stew beef or carrots.  Also add the potatoes at this point and return the pot back into the oven for the last hour.  Remove the bay leaf and serve this gorgeous stew in some fun bowls with a crusty slice of french bread.  Then sit down, put your feet up and enjoy this heart-warming bit of heaven.                     Guaranteed to satisfy! 

We start 'em young...she has good taste!

My daughter was out shooting some pictures for our website, and my granddaughter grabbed onto one of our smaller bottles and carried it around all over with her!  She loves our cider- it's her favorite drink...next to lemonade that is!

Apple Cider Microwave Caramels

Oh my goodness...did I say yummy?!  With Halloween just getting over, and holiday baking on my mind, I just had to try my hand at making some caramels!  They just say holiday...right?!  This recipe is so easy and versatile...cover some crunchy apples with it; stir it in with some cream cheese for a dip for apples; make it a drizzle over ice cream or cheesecake; or...the sky's the limit! Prepare yourself...you're gonna love it!
Apple Cider Microwave Caramels
1 cup butter
2 1/4 cup brown sugar
(1) 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup reduced apple cider (I reduced about 3/4 of a bottle down to 1/2 cup -it becomes pretty thick and
   sticky.  Watch so it doesn't burn- your heat should be medium low)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Melt the butter in a large microwave safe bowl.  Add brown sugar, sweetened condensed milk and corn syrup; stir well.  Microwave for 16-20 minutes, stirring every 3 minutes.  Add vanilla and mix well.  Pour it into a buttered 13x9 pan.  Chill until set.  Cut and wrap the caramels in wax paper - then hide them cuz you're gonna eat them all before anyone comes home!

Grilled Chicken Penne al Fresco

I decided to dabble around with mixing our cider in with pasta...and the drum roll please...I loved it!  In fact, it really enhanced the flavor very nicely -I thought it blended well with the chicken broth!  I'm not an everyday kind of pasta lover, but penne has just the right amount of body to it to make it a heartier meal.  This recipe doesn't have the heavy Alfredo base, it was just light and nice.  I think you'll enjoy it.  Really try and get fresh basil if you can.  I went and bought a plant to put in my kitchen window, cuz I love it so much in my cooking!
So here's the recipe:
Grilled Chicken Penne al Fresco
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups grape tomatoes
3 cups uncooked penne pasta
3 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup apple cider (I used Classic Sweet - Dry would be really good too!)
1/2 tsp. (each) of salt and pepper
1 cup lightly packed fresh basil leaves, sliced in small strips; or 1 Tbl. dried
1 oz. grated Parmesan cheese
2 cups diced, grilled, chicken breasts
red pepper flakes to taste
In a large, deep skillet pour in 2 tsp. olive oil and stir fry the tomatoes.  Once they begin to burst, stir in the minced garlic and stir 1 minute more until it becomes fragrant.  Remove from the heat and chop the tomatoes coarsely.  In the same skillet, add the pasta, broth, cider, salt and pepper.  Cover and simmer until the pasta is tender and has absorbed most of the liquid; approximately 10 minutes.  Meanwhile chop the basil and stir it in with the pasta along with the Parmesan cheese.  Add the grilled chicken.  Season with salt and pepper and toss in some red pepper flakes to your liking.  I always love to add a bit of pizazz- just enough to cause some interest!  Then sit down with your favorite crunchy french bread and a great green salad. Now, that's what I call a great meal!

Curried Butternut Squash Bisque

I couldn't resist, so I dove into trying out another soup recipe for you!  If you love curry, and you love squash, you'll really like this soup because it adds the best of both worlds! 
My daughter cooks a lot of authentic Asian dishes, and she mixed up some amazing Red Curry for me to try out with recipes.  Well, I get weak in the knees for Red Curry dishes, so I just had to do some more experimenting with our cider!  Now the bottled "store bought" Red Curry works fine, but if you want an amazing awakening to your taste buds, try your hand at making homemade- it truly is far superior to the stuff on the grocery shelf!  Anyway, my creative cooking thoughts started into play and I began thinking of ways I could use one of my favorite fall treats...butternut squash.  Pumpkin bars & pumpkin roll immediately jumped into my mind, but I couldn't resist creating something new and different!  I decided to try out a Squash Bisque and dabble using it with our cider.  The finished product was superb...so here it is for you-  I hope you like it!
Curried Butternut Squash Bisque
(2) 2 lb. butternut squash, halved lengthwise and seeded
2 tsp. olive oil
2 Tbl. butter
1 cup finely chopped carrots
1/2 cup chopped and peeled apple
1-2 tsp. Thai red curry paste (no more than 2 tsp. or it will be too strong)
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup Dry Cider
2 bay leaves
1/4 cup whipping cream or half-n-half
6 Tbl. sour cream
Chopped fresh cilantro
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and brush the cut side of your cleaned squash with olive oil.  Place squash, cut side down, on baking sheet and roast until tender, about and hour.  (test with a fork to see if it slides in easily)  Cool slightly and then scoop into a large bowl.  Measure out 3 cups squash, and reserve the rest for some yummy pumpkin bars for dessert!  Melt your butter in a large pot on medium-high heat.  Add onion, carrots and apple; saute for 5 minutes.  Add your delightful curry paste and stir for 2 minutes until well blended.  Add the chicken broth, bay leaves and the 3 cups of squash.  Bring to a boil and then reduce and simmer uncovered for an hour.  Remember to discard the bay leaves before you go onto the next step.  If you are lucky enough to own a wonderful  Blendtec or Vitamix, you'll be pureeing the soup in the blender until smooth- be careful because the soup is hot!  Return back to the pot and stir in the cream.  Season with salt and pepper.  Re-warm over medium heat til heated through.  Divide soup among 8 bowls and drizzle with sour cream; garnish with cilantro.  Be prepared to be delighted!