Have you ever eaten a raspberry orange? I didn’t even know there was such a thing! While grocery shopping for my Mom, and for myself, I noticed a bag of beautifully orange fruit called raspberry oranges. Because I’d never tried them, into my buggy they went! It’s one of the reasons that I love shopping at Aldi. They always have a different variety of choices without the overwhelming feeling of “too much” that I get in larger stores.

I’m sold. They are sweet and juicy! While they look like a regular orange on the outside, the inside is dark crimson, much like a blood orange. It may be the same fruit, renamed by a savvy farmer who thought that a “blood” orange sounded gross! Smart farmer!

My dog, Pepper, who always expects to share my breakfast, gave his seal of approval to them, too. I’m not sure his opinion counts, however. He has been known to eat, and obviously enjoy, some pretty disgusting things. One thing he doesn’t like is the smell of coffee. When my breakfast is gone and all I have left is my coffee, he will take a sniff and walk out of the kitchen, his tail and head down as if to ask “how can she do this to me again?” Poor puppy!

I like the morning ritual of a hot drink more than I like the taste of coffee, but I think it smells heavenly. I’m not fond of creamer and I have to watch my sugar intake, so I usually drink it black. I am guilty of stirring in a squirt of sugar-free chocolate syrup occasionally. I love that mocha flavor! Much of the time, I drink tea. I’ve even been known to microwave a mug of plain water just so I can hold the mug and get my hands warm. I’m pretty sure that’s a few steps beyond normal. Maybe it’s just plain weird, but it works!