This time of year, fresh cranberries are in nearly every store. I love fresh cooked cranberry sauce. You can eat it fresh, pressure cook it or freeze it to preserve and add "other items" to change the complexity and dishes you can serve it with. We even use it as an ice cream topper in our house. Nothing says welcome to the holiday season like fresh cranberry and chocolate sauce over a scoop of creamy vanilla icecream!
Because the temperature ranges vari greatly and my need to have a dish cook for longer periods of time, I start this recipe off always on LOW setting.
Ingredients:
4 cups fresh cranberries
4 cups water
2 cups honey
zest and juice from one large lime
zest and juice from one half orange
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
Method:
Rinse well the fresh cranberries and place into a crockpot on the low setting. Add all remaining ingredients, mix well. Place the lid on your crockpot and go on about your business.
If you are home and can stir this mixture every hour, it helps reduce the liquid and reduce the cooking time. While you can use a thickening agent such as corn starch or tapioca, I find by stirring it at least once per hour and cooking it on low all day long, the end result is thick enough to accommodate a "jelly" type consistency.
If by hour six of simmering on low the consistency is still not as thick as you like, feel free to turn the heat up on your crockpot, when you do however, give it a good stir every 30 minutes. This happens rarely, I find the fresher cranberries cook to a jelly state far faster than older cranberries or frozen cranberries.
By hour six, the cranberries are nice and soft, I mash them in the crockpot with a potato masher and continue to allow the mixture to evaporate some of the moisture until it is the consistency I like.
Additions for other dishes:
After it has cooked, you can add additional ingredients.
For a "relish" style cranberry sauce, mince some celery serve chilled (1/4 cup celery per 1 cup cranberry sauce)
For a nice marmalade, thinly slice two whole oranges and two whole lemons, boil them till tender in sugared water (1 cup sugar and 1 cup water to every 1 cup of oranges and lemons). Add equal parts of the citrus mixture with equal parts of the cranberry sauce and crushed pineapple.
If using as a topping for ice cream, cook down to a more "saucy" or thin gravy consistency. Drizzle chocolate fudge sauce and cranberry sauce, top with fresh mint leaves for a delightful holiday season to an ice cream sunday or milkshake.
A thicker consistency is delightful when serving left over ham or turkey sandwiches. Spread it on your sliced bread in place of other condiments such as mayonnaise.
Use as a dipping sauce for chicken or turkey meatballs.
Cheers and enjoy.
Edited to add note for the moderator: I am so sorry, I put this in the wrong forum thread, this post should be in recipe section. Again I am so sorry.
Because the temperature ranges vari greatly and my need to have a dish cook for longer periods of time, I start this recipe off always on LOW setting.
Ingredients:
4 cups fresh cranberries
4 cups water
2 cups honey
zest and juice from one large lime
zest and juice from one half orange
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
Method:
Rinse well the fresh cranberries and place into a crockpot on the low setting. Add all remaining ingredients, mix well. Place the lid on your crockpot and go on about your business.
If you are home and can stir this mixture every hour, it helps reduce the liquid and reduce the cooking time. While you can use a thickening agent such as corn starch or tapioca, I find by stirring it at least once per hour and cooking it on low all day long, the end result is thick enough to accommodate a "jelly" type consistency.
If by hour six of simmering on low the consistency is still not as thick as you like, feel free to turn the heat up on your crockpot, when you do however, give it a good stir every 30 minutes. This happens rarely, I find the fresher cranberries cook to a jelly state far faster than older cranberries or frozen cranberries.
By hour six, the cranberries are nice and soft, I mash them in the crockpot with a potato masher and continue to allow the mixture to evaporate some of the moisture until it is the consistency I like.
Additions for other dishes:
After it has cooked, you can add additional ingredients.
For a "relish" style cranberry sauce, mince some celery serve chilled (1/4 cup celery per 1 cup cranberry sauce)
For a nice marmalade, thinly slice two whole oranges and two whole lemons, boil them till tender in sugared water (1 cup sugar and 1 cup water to every 1 cup of oranges and lemons). Add equal parts of the citrus mixture with equal parts of the cranberry sauce and crushed pineapple.
If using as a topping for ice cream, cook down to a more "saucy" or thin gravy consistency. Drizzle chocolate fudge sauce and cranberry sauce, top with fresh mint leaves for a delightful holiday season to an ice cream sunday or milkshake.
A thicker consistency is delightful when serving left over ham or turkey sandwiches. Spread it on your sliced bread in place of other condiments such as mayonnaise.
Use as a dipping sauce for chicken or turkey meatballs.
Cheers and enjoy.
Edited to add note for the moderator: I am so sorry, I put this in the wrong forum thread, this post should be in recipe section. Again I am so sorry.