Friday, November 11, 2011

Cranberry Relish with Apples and Oranges

















Ahh, cranberry relish (or cranberry sauce).  Ever present at the Thanksgiving table but somehow, it often gets overlooked with the turkey, green beans or stuffing.  Growing up, I'd often take an obligatory spoonful of the cranberry relish but that was it.  However, now that my tastes have changed (I was a VERY picky eater as a child...sorry, Mom and Dad!), I really like cranberries. 

When I made my first (and only) Thanksgiving dinner last year while we were in California, I was in search for a good cranberry relish recipe.  I prefer the texture of relish (which is more coarsely chopped) to cranberry sauce.  Many of the recipes included oranges, which is a classic pairing with cranberries.  But leave it to America's Test Kitchen to come up with a cranberry relish that also includes apples!  It makes for a delicious combination.  I love the firmness and sweetness that the apple brings.  They also add a bit of ground ginger for extra spice and of course, fresh cranberries, orange and sugar.   The recipe included the orange rind which I thought was a bit overpowering so I would recommend zesting the orange first and then including only the flesh of the fruit in the relish.  Finally, and best of all, it's encouraged to make this dish 1-2 days ahead of time to let the flavors meld together!

So while this may never usurp the turkey (or stuffing...stuffing is the way to go, people) on your table, I think this is a cranberry relish that can still hold its own.

Cranberry Relish
Taken from: America's Test Kitchen
Makes 2 cups (8-12 servings)
  • 1 large sweet apple, peeled, cored, roughly chopped (I prefer honeycrisp or fuji -- something sweet but firm)
  • 1 (12 ounce) bag cranberries (approximately 3 cups)
  • 1 orange, zested, then remove and discard peel; cut fruit into quarters
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 pinch table salt
1. Pulse all ingredients in food processor until mixture resembles coarse meal. 
2. Refrigerate for 1 to 2 days for flavors to fully develop. Serve.

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