Cranberry Sauce: how do you like it?

[Gypsy]

Molded? Jellied? Chutney? With orange zest? With Ginger? Jalapeños? Or maybe you hate it? Discuss and post recipes please!

 

[missy]

Love it when it is freshly home made. Here is (from my poor memory) my dh's recipe. Delicious.

1lb cranberries
cup of sugar
cup of water
orange zest

 

[dk168]

Not something I would normally eat, as I don't like turkey.

However, I had cranberry jelly in the past with roast duck and it was a refreshing change from orange and mango onion jam I normally have.

DK

 

[missy]

Not something I would normally eat, as I don't like turkey.

However, I had cranberry jelly in the past with roast duck and it was a refreshing change from orange and mango onion jam I normally have.

DK

I don't eat turkey either but cranberry jelly is great with so many other dishes IMO. I love it with almost anything (the only meat I eat is fish). Great with other veggies and in a salad too!

 

[VRBeauty]

Homemade, with a touch of orange, no nuts. Simple. Kinda like Missy's recipe!

 

[VRBeauty]

WHich reminds me... add cranberries to the shopping list!

 

[purplesparklies]

Our fave is Amaretto Cranberry Sauce. It is amazing! Yum!

http://www.heritagerecipes.com/holiday/Amaretto%20Cranberries%20Sauce.htm

 

[RandG]

Cranberry sauce never received much attention at the table so I dropped it a few years back in favor of an additional stuffing made with dried cranberries and sliced almonds. I still like a touch of cranberry with my smoked turkey.

 

[choro72]

This is Ina Garten's recipe. It's the best, but use half the sugar. The full amount listed here will give you a nosebleed. I use less than 1 Cup.

Ingredients
1 (12-ounce) bag of fresh cranberries, cleaned
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and chopped
1 orange, zest grated and juiced
1 lemon, zest grated and juiced
3/4 cup raisins
3/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

 

[TooPatient]

LOVE cranberry sauce! Almost done with our second 3 lb bag of the season with number 3 ready in the refrigerator


The basic:

1 lb cranberries
3 spoons sugar (about 4 Tbsp)
juice from 2 oranges (or about enough to come halfway up the cranberries)
optional: little bit of vanilla (maybe 1/2 Tbsp or so)

Heat over moderate heat until simmering lightly. After they've all popped open, remove from heat. Serve warm or cold.


curacao:

1 lb cranberries
3 spoons sugar (about 4 Tbsp)
splash of orange curacao (about 3 oz or so) (if you haven't tried this, look it up! Basically a brandy that has been aged with curacao orange peel )
optional: little bit of vanilla (maybe 1/2 Tbsp or so)

Cook same as above.


DH's cranberry relish:

1 lb cranberries
splash (1/4 cup or so) orange juice
zest of 1 lemon
zest of 1 orange
1 granny smith apple
sprinkle (3 Tbsp or so) sugar --- NOTE: I always add a bit more to my serving because the raw cranberries make the tart a bit more intense

Toss all in the food processor and mix until medium course cranberry bits. Best when let to sit for some hours. Serve cold.
(feel like I'm missing something here, will modify when DH wakes up if I missed anything)


ETA: I also like to toss them in with rice or in stuffing or in cranberry-orange bread or in bread pudding or cranberry-apple crisp or in a bowl of oatmeal or....

 

[Calliecake]

Gypsy, I hope all is well with you and John!

I've never made cranberry sauce but I love my moms. Her recipe sounds a lot like Missy's husband as far as ingredients go.

 

[Wednesday]

Although I usually make food from scratch, cranberry sauce is an exception, just based on what I'm used to traditionally. Ocean Spray canned cranberry sauce, cut into slices. Anything else isn't quite right.

Of the homemade sauces, I find ones that are too spiced/citrusy to be distracting. I prefer something a little blander and tart. Missy's recipe sounds good.

 

[marymm]

I love cranberry sauce, preferably homemade (and by me), but I will eat store-bought/canned if that is on the table.

I use the basic recipe on the cranberry bag but with 3/4 the water and about 1/2 the sugar, so it is thicker and not so sweet.

 

[ame]

If I eat it, the jelly from the can.

 

[stracci2000]

Love cranberry sauce!
I was always the one who loved it most, growing up.
Love the rings from the can on the jellied kind-!

But now that I'm a grown-up(LOL), I like to make it fresh, and follow the recipe on the bag. Adding orange is real nice, too.

 

[baby monster]

This is Ina Garten's recipe. It's the best, but use half the sugar. The full amount listed here will give you a nosebleed. I use less than 1 Cup.

Ingredients
1 (12-ounce) bag of fresh cranberries, cleaned
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and chopped
1 orange, zest grated and juiced
1 lemon, zest grated and juiced
3/4 cup raisins
3/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

That's my fav as well and I also cut the sugar! It's still so sweet that I end up eating it for dessert.

 

[AprilBaby]

No chunks

 

[Gypsy]

I actually love the the molded no chunk stuff from Oceanspray.

But my DH doesn't. So I make something close to Missy's recipe usually. I just add zest. I also don't like too much sugar so I usually use 1/2-3/4 a cup.

I am going to try adding a small amount of grated fresh ginger this year though.

I am hoping it turns out well!

 

[TooPatient]

I actually love the the molded no chunk stuff from Oceanspray.

But my DH doesn't. So I make something close to Missy's recipe usually. I just add zest. I also don't like too much sugar so I usually use 1/2-3/4 a cup.

I am going to try adding a small amount of grated fresh ginger this year though.

I am hoping it turns out well!

Ginger sounds yummy!
I've tried with vanilla and a bit of cinnamon before. A little cinnamon was good but too much was overwhelming.

If you like the Oceanspray stuff, have you looked at Alton Brown's recipe? He did a Thanksgiving special one year where he did one for people who like the jellied stuff out of a can but sort of gourmet. (just tried to find it, but can't get food network's site to work)
He did it sort of funny (actually poured it in a can to set so it had the can shape and everything) but the recipe looked credible.

 

[Gypsy]

I did consider that, TooPatient. But Thanksgiving is DH's favorite holiday and so I spoil him, and he likes chunks. I don't mind the chunky stuff. I just prefer the other stuff.

We generally do whatever I want for Christmas so it evens out!

 

[zoebartlett]

I love cranberry sauce - canned or homemade, it doesn't matter. I can't imagine adding jalepenos though. Spicy cranberry sauce just seems wrong to me.

If I make cranberry sauce, I follow the recipe on the bag, but I usually cut the sugar.

 

[AGBF]

Trader Joe's sells a fabulous cranberry sauce. One year I tried to buy more and couldn't, so the following year, I bought about 40 jars to see me through an entire year until they had it at Thanksgiving for the next year. I believe that they must be sold out for this year already, since I saw none on the shelves the last time I was in a Trader Joe's. I wasn't looking hard, however, since I had a supply at home.

Having said that (besides using it as a side dish, I use the cranberry sauce for things such as to substitute it for chutney with a frozen Indian meal I serve my father or to spread on his English muffins instead of jelly), I love cranberries in jello on Thanksgiving.

I guess that would go under Gypsy's "molded" cranberry sauces category. I like both simple jello recipes and fancier ones that employ mayonnaise or cream cheese or whipped cream in their creation. There is something cool in the jello among all that Thanksgiving hot food that appeals to me and seems thirst quenching.

Here is a recipe I apparently (according to my notes) tried in 2003!

2 3-ounce packages cranberry-raspberry jello
1 16-ounce can whole cranberry sauce
1 20-ounce can crushed pineapple with juice
1 8-ounce package cream cheese
1 cup chopped pecans
1 T. mayonnaise

1. Drain crushed pineapple and save 1/4 cup of the juice. Dissolve jello in 2 cups hot water. Stir in cranberries and pineapple. Pour 1/2 of the mixture into a bowl and leave at room temperature. Set the other 1/2 in the refrigerator until firm.

2. In a separate bowl, mix together the cream cheese, mayonnaise, reserved pineapple juice, and chopped pecans. Spread mixture over chilled jello. Place in refrigerator for 10 minutes. Pour the room temperature jello over the top of the cream cheese layer and refrigerate until set.

Makes 8-10 servings.

 

[vc10um]

I use Alton Brown's recipe. So easy and so yummy!

Ingredients
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/4 cup 100 percent cranberry juice, not cocktail
1 cup honey
1 pound fresh cranberries, approximately 4 cups

Directions
Wash the cranberries and discard any soft or wrinkled ones.

Combine the orange juice, cranberry juice and honey in a 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the cranberries and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the cranberries burst and the mixture thickens. Do not cook for more than 15 minutes as the pectin will start to break down and the sauce will not set as well. Remove from the heat and allow to cool for 5 minutes.

Carefully spoon the cranberry sauce into a 3 cup mold. Place in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours and up to overnight.

Remove from the refrigerator, overturn the mold and slide out the sauce. Slice and serve.

 

[qtiekiki]

I usually do the basic, like Missy's and the Mama Stamberg's Cranberry Relish. My friend told me about the relish a few years ago. I love it. It's great to use with leftovers for sandwiches too.

* 2 cups whole raw cranberries, washed
* 1 small onion
* 3/4 cup sour cream
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 2 tablespoons horseradish from a jar ("red is a bit milder than white")

Grind the cranberries and onion into a chunky grinder (you can hand grind or use a food processor). Add everything else and mix together. Put in the freezer. Thaw in refrigerator the morning of the day you are using it (it should still have some little icy slivers left when served).

 

[Skippy123]

I like Cranberry Relish

Bag of fresh cranberries
2 oranges
1 cup sugar

Place half the cranberries and half the orange slices in food processor container. Process until mixture is evenly chopped. Transfer to a bowl. Repeat with remaining cranberries and orange slices. Stir in sugar. Store in refrigerator or freezer.

 

[telephone89]

i LOVE cranberries, but I hate cranberry sauce, and especially on turkey. So weird to me lol.

 

[AGBF]

i LOVE cranberries, but I hate cranberry sauce, and especially on turkey. So weird to me lol.

So how do you like them? In baked products? Have you ever had them in a jello mold? If you like jello, cranberries in a jello mold, especially a rich one full of whipped cream and/or cream cheese, is positively decadent! One tastes the individual cranberries, so it isn't like a sauce in which the cranberries are all chopped up or puréed (not that I, personally, dislike those types of sauces). The cranberries are full and present and whole, but the surrounding dessert-like product holding them is cool, sweet, and creamy.

Deb/AGBF

 

[AGBF]

By the way, this turned into a great thread. Thank you for starting it, Gypsy! I have to take out my recipe box or three-ring holiday binder and start scribbling!

Deb/AGBF

 

[AGBF]

I usually do the basic, like Missy's and the Mama Stamberg's Cranberry Relish. My friend told me about the relish a few years ago. I love it. It's great to use with leftovers for sandwiches too.

* 2 cups whole raw cranberries, washed
* 1 small onion
* 3/4 cup sour cream
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 2 tablespoons horseradish from a jar ("red is a bit milder than white")

Grind the cranberries and onion into a chunky grinder (you can hand grind or use a food processor). Add everything else and mix together. Put in the freezer. Thaw in refrigerator the morning of the day you are using it (it should still have some little icy slivers left when served).

This looks really good to me. I know I cannot make it this year, but I don't want to lose the recipe. I am grateful that Gypsy started this thread because I never saw recipes like this. I am interested in seeing more and may seek them out now that I know they exist. We always ate sweet cranberry sauces in my family!

 

[telephone89]

i LOVE cranberries, but I hate cranberry sauce, and especially on turkey. So weird to me lol.

So how do you like them? In baked products? Have you ever had them in a jello mold? If you like jello, cranberries in a jello mold, especially a rich one full of whipped cream and/or cream cheese, is positively decadent! One tastes the individual cranberries, so it isn't like a sauce in which the cranberries are all chopped up or puréed (not that I, personally, dislike those types of sauces). The cranberries are full and present and whole, but the surrounding dessert-like product holding them is cool, sweet, and creamy.

Deb/AGBF

I like cranberry juice (probably too much, people must think i have a uti all the time!) probably the most. And raw/fresh cranberries, I just eat them out of the bag haha.

I don't mind them in baked products, like a cranberry muffin or something. I don't think I've ever had jello-ed cranberries. Do you put the cream cheese in with the jello? Or just on top?