MNN - Mother Nature Network

Last Saturday, I was given the gift of about 50 apples and a gallon of apple cider from Shober Orchards of Monroeville, N.J. Shober sells at the Collingswood Farmers Market when it’s in season. For the past few years, they have returned to the site of the market shortly before Christmas with free apples and cider as a thank you to those who support them during the season.

 

So I’ve got this gallon of apple cider, and I’ve had some and so have the boys, but there is still some left. I’ve got lots of parties and celebrations to attend in the next week, so I thought I’d see if I could use the cider in other ways. Here are five recipes I came up with that use apple cider as in ingredient. (I think I’ll be trying out the pound cake and chicken recipes.)

 

Cider Brined Pork Chops with Creamed Leeks and Apples – I could use both the cider and some of the apples for this recipe. The chops are brined in apple cider and spices overnight.

 

Sweet Potatoes with Cider and Brown Sugar – Sweet potatoes are cooked in cider instead of water, run through a food processor, and then baked in the oven. If you’re looking for a side dish for Christmas ham or turkey, you might want to give this a try.

 

Apple Cider Pound Cake – This highly spiced pound cake gets drizzled with a buttermilk icing. Looks delicious.

 

Stuffed French Toast Strata with Apple Cider Syrup– This is an overnight French toast recipe that uses cream cheese and cream in it. Looks very rich and very yummy.

 

Chicken with Cider and Bacon Sauce – A simple, one-pan chicken dish that reviewers suggest could use a double portion of the sauce, but otherwise seems great.