Cider Slushie

This is a strange time of year, a transition of the seasons. It feels kind of like limbo. Summer and fall are fighting for center stage. Outside, I can feel the breeze and coolness of the air, but then the stifling heat takes over. The leaves are falling off the trees, not because of cool temperatures, but because we haven't had rain in I don't know when, and it's so darn hot. It is September 3rd, and yesterday my sister's car thermometer read 100 degrees. It's been like this since May, more or less. Labor Day marks the unofficial end of summer, and I am looking forward to cooler temperatures.

Today I went to the orchard with my parents to get our staple vegetables, and probably the last batch of peaches for the summer. In anticipation of fall, the orchard has apples and butternut squash for sale, with their summer produce as well.

One thing they had, which contributed to my seasonal limbic state, was an apple cider slushie. I've never seen such a thing! Every fall, this orchard has freshly pressed cider that's just the right amount of sweet and tart.  But my associations with cider are having a warm cup on cool fall days when the foliage has turned rich red hues, or drinking it mulled (sometimes spiked) with friends for the holidays. This was a tasty chilled surprise, and a great find on this hot end-of-summer day as I anticipate fall's arrival.