Best Cranberry Sauce Recipe

[snowflake]

What is your favorite Cranberry Sauce recipe. I will be making it tonight.

I am not looking for the normal, cranberries, sugar, water. I have made one before with the zest of orange, vinegar, etc. and it turned out divine, but can't seem to find the recipe.

Any help would be great!
Thanks

[Candy]

This is delicious, I'm glad you reminded me of it.

You will need to combine in a saucepan, 1 12oz. bag of cranberries, 1 C. Cabernet Sauvignon, 1 C. sugar, 2 tsp. finely grated tangerine zest and a 3" cinnamon stick. Cook stirring and bring too a boil then reduce heat and simmer 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat and discard the cinnamon stick. Serve warm or cool.

This has converted people who believed that they did not care for cranberry sauce.

[smokey]

I honestly think part of the conversion is that most people have never had home made (not to knock your recipe, mind you!). I thought I didn't like it until I made my home made recipe and realized how good cranberry sauce was when it wasn't molded into the shape of a tin can!

Smokey

[Candy]

No, the people I served it to last year had made their own numerous times because that was the way it had always been done in their famlies homes. They just were convnced that thre was no good cranberry sauce to be had. There is something about the cab and cranberries that just works beautifully.

My mom used to serve the canned stuff when I was a kid and while I liked that, fresh was a revelation to me when I first made it. But she grew up on a ranch in southern AZ in the 30's-40's and you can bet fresh cranberries were just not happening and then as an Air Force wife living all over, she got what she could in the commissaries.

[Caitlin McGrath]

You may be right. A friend who'd never tasted any but canned and liked it okay was over while I was making my standard cranberry sauce, made with orange rind and raspberry vinegar. She smelled it cooking and immediately asked for the recipe. After T-day, she called me and said, "I'm never eating the canned stuff again!" Neither is the rest of her family [g].

[jnovgirl]

I make a similar one with zinfandel and additionally a couple cloves and whole allspice -- cooking the peel and spices with the wine and sugar for a while, then straining out the spices and cooking the berries in the syrup. I think I originally got the recipe from Bon Appetit/Epicurious. It's even better the second day, and it's true that it makes converts of cranberry haters.

[Tom Hall]

Is this the recipe?

Link: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/rec...

[Candy]

No,it is similar but mine does not have brown sugar, orange rind or allspice and uses Cabernet just as I posted.

12 oz. cranberries, 1 C. cab, 1 c. sugar, 2 tsp. finely grated tangerine peel and 1 3" cinnamon stick, bring all to a boil then reduce heat and simmer 10-15 miinutes serve warm or cool.

[Caitlin McGrath]

Tom was asking if it was the zinfandel/cranberry variation from Epicurious that jnovgirl mentioned, and I think he found it.

I have used the Epicurious recipe linked below for cranberry-ginger-peach sauce, and it's great if you like a sweet sauce. Here is my Epicurious review, which includes my tweaking of the recipe, which I defintely recommend doing:

"This is another tasty variation on the holiday staple, and would be good with all kinds of dishes. I added some subtle spice by steeping a cheesecloth bundle of cinnamon stick, whole cloves, and crushed cardamom pods in the sugar syrup for half an hour before proceeding."

I actually canned this sauce a couple of years ago, and everyone who received it as a holiday gift seemed to think it was great.

I intend to try the cabernet recipe this year; I usually make two or more sauces and chutneys because I'm cranberry sauce-obsessed.

Link: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/rec...

[jnovgirl]

(just noticing the question a week later) Yep, that's the one.

[Val]

Yeah, Candy...you posted the Cabernet Cranberries recipe...that is our all-time favorite! What a shame I ever ate that stuff from a can. The tangerine zest is fabulous in it.

[Hope]

Do you know if you can make this ahead and freeze?

[Absonot]

I toss in some toasted, coarsely chopped walnuts for a nice texture contrast. I normally do a bit or orange zest too.

[MMRuth]

I make the cranberry/sugar/water and add slivers of crystalized ginger and toasted almond slivers. Tastes even better if it has a couple days to sit.

[Deenso]

This is a recipe I've posted before in response to the same request. I think it's fabulous and so do my friends and family. (In another recent post, asking for ideas for desserts involving pears, I suggested poaching them as in this recipe, but not mixing with the cranberries.)

Cranberry/Pear Relish

4 ripe Bosc pears
6 cups very strong coffee
3 cups sugar (1½ cups for pears, 1½ cups for cranberries)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 lemon, cut in half
1 (8-oz.) bag of cranberries

Poach the pears: Peel and slice the pears lengthwise, rubbing with lemon to keep them from turning brown. Core the halves and remove the stem & bud ends with a paring knife.

Pour the coffee into a large sauce pan. Stir in 1½ cups of sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla and bring to a boil. Add the halved pears. When it comes back to the boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for about 15 minutes. Remove the pears and set aside to cool a bit. Discard the coffee.

Cook the cranberries: While the pears are cooling, prepare the cranberries according to the directions on the bag, (i.e., cover with water, add about 1½ cups of sugar, bring to a boil, then simmer ‘til they’ve all ‘exploded’ and the mixture is thick). It doesn’t take very long... Remove from heat and put into a large bowl.

Mix cranberries & pears together: When the pears are cool enough to handle, cut them into small chunks and put them into the bowl with the cranberries. Toss to mix well, transfer to a serving dish, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve (or at least a couple of hours).

[jdherbert]

I'm all for the pears!
I have made a similar cran-pear sauce for the past severl years.

I tried tossing the pears in olive oil and roasting them at 400 until golden brown edges form- just toss 'em into the berry slurry just after they all burst until everything is pink and ymmy.

I also have poached my pears in everthing from port to chardonay to orange zinger tea! It's all delicious!

If you can stand the suspense, make the pears yummy however you like, but refrain from mixing them into the cranberries unti leverything has chilled. The texture and flavor differences will be more pronounced.

Have fun!

[curiousbaker]

My favorite is cranberries, sugar, port, a bit of orange juice and rind, and cardomom. I usually just estimate the proportions. I adore this, and my mom, who is fussy, likes it, but my boyfriend, who usually isn't fussy, dislikes it rather strongly. Not sure what to make of that.

[Wendy Lai]

I don't usually use a recipe, just toss some berries with some water, sugar, orange peels, cinnmon sticks and maybe some brandy and cook to soft. It'll just set up itself. Usually, I use juse enough water to cover the berries and that seem to be fine.

I think some nuts would be a nice addition.

[Chris]

No discussion of cranberry sauce would be complete without this famous recipe, which is very good, but odd.

Mama Stamberg's Cranberry Relish

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 raw berries and onion together. ("I use an old-fashioned meat grinder," says Stamberg. "I'm sure there's a setting on the food processor that will give you a chunky grind -- not a puree.")

Add everything else and mix.

Put in a plastic container and freeze.

Early Thanksgiving morning, move it from freezer to refrigerator compartment to thaw. ("It should still have some little icy slivers left.")

The relish will be thick, creamy, and shocking pink. ("OK, Pepto Bismol pink. It has a tangy taste that cuts through and perks up the turkey and gravy. It’s also good on next-day turkey sandwiches, and with roast beef.")

Makes 1 1/2 pints.
----------
The link below also has a great recipe for garlicky cranberry chutney.

Link: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/st...

[arifa]

this is the one i use, and it's awesome!

Apple-Orange Cranberry Sauce

Cranberry sauce has always been part of the traditional
Thanksgiving menu. In the 1960s, an uncooked sauce of
coarsely ground cranberries and oranges became a national
favorite. But since then, the original quickly cooked
cranberry sauce has regained its popularity, with many
variations such as this one with apple, orange and a hint
of spice.

Ingredients:

1/2 orange
2 cups water
1 tart apple, such as Granny Smith, pippin or
McIntosh
3 cups fresh cranberries
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground cloves

Directions

Squeeze the juice from the orange and set the juice aside.
Remove and discard the membrane from inside the orange rind
and cut the rind into small dice. In a small saucepan over
high heat, combine the rind and the water and bring to a
boil. Cook for 10 minutes, then drain and set aside.

Peel, core and quarter the apple. Cut into 1/2-inch dice
and place in a saucepan. Sort the cranberries, discarding
any soft ones. Add to the apples along with the orange
juice, orange rind, sugar, cinnamon and cloves. Bring to a
boil over high heat, reduce the heat to low and cover the
pan partially. Simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until
the sauce thickens, the apple is tender and the cranberries
have burst, 10 to 15 minutes.

Transfer the cranberry sauce to a heatproof bowl and let
cool for 1 hour before serving. Or cover and refrigerate;
bring to room temperature before serving. Transfer the
cranberry sauce to a sauceboat and pass at the table. Makes
3 1/2 to 4 cups.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Library Series,
Thanksgiving & Christmas, by Chuck Williams (Time-Life
Books, 1993).

[adamclyde]

Use chipotles. It's amazing with cranberries.

I don't like sweet cranberry sauces, so I concocted this - looking for a bit more savory, more chutney like, with some kick. It was awesome.

I wish I knew the porportions... unfortunately I don't. But you can use the ingredients here and match them to many similar recipes to get the idea of porportions. This is wonderful paired with turkey, or ham, and even better on sandwiches.

* Fresh cranberries
* 2-4 chipotles in adobo (depending on how strong you want it)
* ginger
* cider vinegar
* shallots
* garlic
* sugar
* salt

If you don't want the smokey flavor of chipotles, you can substitute with a fresh jalapeno and dried pepper flakes. That's how I used to make them until I figured out that chipotle was the perfect foil for cranberries.

you'll never go back...

[smokey]

1 bag cranberries
sub orange juice for the water
reduce sugar by 25-33% (much more than that and it's really too tart for most folks)
add slices of ginger to mix

Cook according to directions on bag, but using above ingredient list. I leave the ginger in from beginning until just before it's served, but then pull it out so nobody gets a big hunk.

I don't like cloves so don't add them. Some might add cloves. Some folks add other fruit, almost making it more of a relish in my mind (e.g. pears).

Smokey

[Nyleve]

There was a cranberry sauce with red wine (merlot? cabernet?) posted here last year that was absolutely delicious. And I don't even like cranberry sauce. Anyone remember the recipe? I'm sure I have it somewhere, but can't find it right now.

[Candy]

I just posted it again today.

[Funwithfood]

My favorite is made with Marsala, cherries & rosemary.

[ChiliDude]

I can't remember the ingredient measurments at the moment, but here are the ingredients...

1 pound of fresh cranberries (not 12 oz. bag)
sugar
tapioca for thickening
orange juice and zest
TEQUILA

and if you're really brave...some form of chile pod (hot peppers).

Trader Joe's usually sells fresh cranberries in a clam-shell plastic container for less than the supermarkets vend the other brand(s).

[Candy]

Cranberries are so full of natural pectin that they jell or set up beautifully. I've never heard of adding thickening agents and never found the need for one. Tell me a bit more about what the tapioca contributes.

[ChiliDude]

I add about a heaping teaspoon to the mix because I don't cook the popped cranberries for a long time. Maybe the tapioca isn't needed, but it produces a gel to my liking. No one has ever complained about the result.

My cranberry sauce ingredients tend to vary from year to year because I like to play with my food. Tapioca is a little insurance against my experimentation creating a failure. The tequila was last years trial.

My experimentation drives my wife crazy. She adheres closely to any recipe that she prepares. I look at a recipe and say "What if...?"

[Nancy]

Cranberry Conserve in the Joy of Cooking. Outstanding.

[oakjoan]

After going over all the messages in this thread, I realized that (unless I've overlooked it) nobody mentioned my favorite cranberry concoction. It is NOT COOKED at all and is, as follows:
(I'd add less than a cup of sugar at first and taste, as I like it tarter than the following recipe)

1 bag (12 ounces) whole fresh cranberries, well washed and patted dry
1 thin skinned, seedless oranges, well washed and dried
1 cup sugar

Make sure there are no seeds in oranges. Cut the oranges into quarters and then chop them up roughly. Either in a meat grinder or in a food processor chop the raw cranberries and oranges. Transfer to glass or ceramic serving bowl and add the sugar. Cover with plastic and let stand for 24 hours. Refrigerate after that; this will keep for 2 weeks.

This recipe is from the food network, but epicurious has at least one as well. I used "cranberry orange relish uncooked" to find them.

[Candy]

I like that too, sometimes I make both sauce and relish.

[furryabdul]

get canned oceanspray (i like the whole one) and add one of these: red pepper flakes, grated orange rind, finely julianned ginger. awesome on chicken & turkey. bon appetite! asalam alekum. abdul :)