Oh, heeeeeeyyyyyyyyyy guys!
So I haven’t touched this blog of mine in over a month, AND I’m bringing you cranberry relish after Thanksgiving.
I’m super on top of things. No worries.
During that month I packed up all of our crap, moved to a new city (again), unpacked said crap, hosted Thanksgiving, and then galavanted around San Francisco with family for the better part of a week.
I also made you this Cranberry Ginger Relish… with the most earnest intentions of posting it before Thanksgiving, but oh well. If you’re anything like me, it’s still completely relevant because cranberry relish is awesome all the freaking time, not just one day a year!
It should be mentioned that I didn’t always feel this way.
Once upon a time, the only cranberries I ate came in the form of that mysterious, cranberry-like jello that shoots out of a can and wobbles all around your plate. And oh, how I loved it. Even when my mom started using fresh cranberries for our Thanksgiving meal, she would always buy a can of the cranberry goo, just for me. I wanted nothing to do with that weird looking chunky stuff she started slinging year after year.
Fresh cranberries?? Orange zest?! Pffft – I’ll stick to my can, thanks.
I feel as though somebody should’ve tried a little harder to tell me what I was missing out on. I mean, it’s not like I was a stubborn kid or anything…
Hah.
Haha.
So I have a double PSA for today:
1. If you’re stubbornly clutching your canned cranberry sauce and still haven’t tried one with fresh cranberries, do yourself a favor and try it. It’s so much more flavorful, and this one in particular is spicy, citrusy and simple to make.
2. If you’re only eating cranberry relish once a year, wake up! This stuff freezes like nobody’s business, lasts well in the fridge, and tastes delicious on, um, everything. Yogurt and granola, BOOM. Cranberry relish it up. Ice cream, panna cotta, cheesecake, etc.? Yup. Smother those fools in relish.
Get cray with your cranberry.
Cranberry Ginger Relish
Serves
8
Ingredients
- 12 oz bag fresh cranberries
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
- 1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
- 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1/4 cup minced crystallized ginger
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Combine all ingredients with a tiny pinch each of salt and pepper in a medium saucepan and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the cranberries soften and the sugar dissolves, about 12-15 minutes.
- Increase the heat to medium and simmer until the cranberries burst and the mixture thickens, about 15 minutes. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary. Remove the cinnamon stick and serve the relish warm or at room temperature.
