A few weeks ago the folks over at POM Wonderful contacted me about whether or not I would like to try some of their product. I debated on whether or not I wanted to accept free product from a company - even if they didn't explicitly ask me for a review - and eventually came to the decision that I would never post a false review about anything, good or bad, and I always disclose if I received the product gratis.

Which I did.

So, no harm no foul - right?

And since I'm sure pretty much everyone on the planet has had pomegranate juice at this point and POM Wonderful is essentially the only national commercial producer of pomegranate juice, we all know it's pretty damn good.

It tastes good, it's rumored to be the holy grail of antioxidants, and with any luck the consumption of internationally grown pomegranates will help alleviate poverty in the Middle East.(POM Wonderful only uses domestically grown pomegranates, however.)

All that is well and good, but I'm more interested in pairing the juice with pureed pineapple and taking a tropical vacation in my mouth during this cold and dreary December.

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After mentioning the many batches of frozen Greek yoghurt in my post about apple cider ice cream the other day, I figured it appropriate to finally post about the frozen yoghurt itself.

I've made it with both traditional Greek yoghurt and normal plain yoghurt that has been drained of excess liquid and also with both honey and sugar to sweeten. All have been delicious and I really have no preference for any of them over another.

A couple weekends ago I made a batch of sweetened with sugar and topped with honey and pomegranate seeds - that has been, by far, my favorite way to enjoy it.

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There are few things more synonymous with fall than apple cider.

The leaves are starting to change, there's a brisk edge to the breeze, and sandals are exchanged for über-cute boots. What could be more comfortable than curling up in a big fluffy blanket on the sofa with a great movie on the television and a big, steaming mug of spiced apple cider in hand?

Well, when you're in North Carolina and the temperature is routinely swinging from rainy and 55°F and sunny and 80°F, apple cider ice cream seems a bit more appropriate.

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I remember as a child my sister and I made ice pops nearly every opportunity we had during the summer. We'd sift through the refrigerator, mixing juices and creating different flavor concoctions to pour into the molds. Grape juice, apple juice, lemonade, root beer - you name it, we tried to freeze it.

My favorite then was grape - I believe hers was apple.

I still enjoy a good popsicle over ice cream any day of the week, although I think that has more do to with my freakish sensitivity to cold (thanks to a particularly unskilled dentist a few years ago) than with an actual preference.

I must admit that now my tastes run a little bit more involved than just a simple frozen juice, even though I doubt I'd turn down a grape popsicle most days (a real one, not the fake flavored, frozen garbage people feed to their kids nowadays), especially if it were with my sister.

I was quite delighted to find David Lebovitz's recipe for Vietnamese Coffee Popsicles yesterday.

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I spotted this delightful cup of frozen booziness on Apple Pie, Patis, & Pâté. I had some tasty Cabernet left over from making Goat Cheese Stuffed Pork Loin and couldn't think of a better time to experiment with it.

It turned out pretty fabulous, all things considered. Some how my whole cloves mysteriously disappeared, so I was left using ground. I definitely added way too much, that's for sure. The cloves overpower nearly all the other flavors. Thankfully, I really like cloves (not quite this much, but enough) so it doesn't bother me too much. This is most definitely a recipe that's going to be made regularly throughout the summer.

I will warn you though, if you're a lightweight like me this stuff'll knock you right on your booty. I had only what you see in the glass and I was already starting to feel it. Of course, it is pretty much all booze...

Husband was having fun taking pictures while I held ice on my hand for the awesome burn I gave myself while cooking dinner.

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