Naps, Mugs and R&B

I was mugged twice last week. The first time was downtown. I was standing with my dad, holding my wallet in my hand (yeah, I know), and a guy came up, knocked it out of my hand and ran. My dad and I chased him and did a lot of screaming, but all said and done, the guy ended up with my wallet.

The second time, however, was glorious. A few weeks back I ordered two mugs from Caroline Douglas, and they finally arrived in the mail. They each tell a little story—peach and teal (a phase I'm in), mixed animal bodies, crowns and stripes, women dreaming. They’re amazing.

I wanted something really beautiful to go in them for their debut. So on Sunday afternoon while my apple cake was baking in the oven and Eric was napping on the couch, I turned on a little John Legend and made cranberry tea. It’s a steamy simmer that makes the house smell like fall, and at the end you’re rewarded with tangy, hot pink bliss.

While the first mugging was really unfortunate and a little unnerving, I’d say the second one more than made up for it.

Cranberry Tea
12 oz fresh cranberries
6 cups water
2 cinnamon sticks
5-10 peppercorns
15-20 cloves
8-10 cardamom pods
1 orange
5 T sugar

1. Simmer cranberries, water, cinnamon, peppercorns, cloves, cardamom and the peal of the orange for about 30 minutes, until the berries are mushy and paler in color.
2. Remove from heat and add the sugar and the juice from the orange. Stir until the sugar is dissolved.
3. Strain.
4. Serve hot in a really special mug or cold with seltzer.