I shared a couple of oranges with Evan and chopped up the peels. We had cod and couscous last night leaving half of a lemon that would give up its flesh. I dried the peels in the oven at 250* for a couple of hours.

After the peels were dried I added them to a mixture consisting of 1 tablespoon each of allspice, coriander, juniper berries, and cloves and filled a pint jar with Svedka vodka.

In a few weeks I’ll  filter the infusion through coffee filter into dropper bottles and make some cocktails!

I’ve been threatening to use the slow-cooker more. Today, being cold and un-full, seemed like a great day to start.

Ingredients:

Pork:

• 4 pound pork butt
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 jalapeno
• salt
• pepper
• cinnamon
• cilantro (I didn’t have enough dried and couldn’t find any fresh)
• beer (I used Boulevard pilsner)

Toppings:

• 1 avocado
• 1/2 of a white onion
• queso fresco (crumbly cheese, could use feta if queso fresco can’t be found)
• corn tortillas

Beans:

• canned (exciting)

I bought an 8 pound pork butt and cut it in half, making use of the newly aquired deep freeze. I trimmed the largest pieces of fat off and cut slits in the butt. I stuff the slits with the chopped up garlic and jalapeno. I used about a table spoon of salt and a tablespoon of pepper and rubbed it on the top of the roast. The little bit of dried cilantro was  sprinkled onto the top of the roast along with around a teaspoon of cinnamon. I poured the beer over the top of the roast and set the cooker on high for 6 hours.

The beer and cinnamon flavors consumed the air in our house. The scents were especially potent when coming in from outside. The smell of food in the air makes a home inviting.

Once cooked the meat came apart with a gentle tug of the fork. The meat was piled onto the tortillas and topped with the onions, cheese and avocado. I added a little Cholula sauce to mine but Jacey kept hers naked.