I love a simple cranberry juice drink, made with cranberries I've picked myself. Nigella Lawson's upside down cranberry pie is also delicious - I blogged about it ages ago, so I think it's time to revisit the recipe soon. Cranberry relishes & chutneys aren't very popular here in Estonia, we use them more in baking. Lingonberries, however, are a popular addition to various meat dishes.

These recipes look fantastic! Especially the cranberry stuffed pork roast.

My wife makes a mean cranberry sauce, probably the best I've ever tasted, with fennel and orange. It's one of the stars of our holiday table, though I usually ask her to make it with frozen berries at least once during the warmer months of the year as well.

I just did a very similiar post last night on my blog..."what do you do with cranberries?" I'm sure I'll get several responses along the lines of "open a can."

My favorite cranberry dish would be my Drunken Cranberries. A little booze, cranberries, pear/pineapple, citrus juices...all comes together really well and people love it!

http://sseichinger.blogspot.com/2005/11/thanksgiving-side-drunken-cranberries.html

My Dad always makes a fresh cranberry relish, throwing in a whole orange with peel, LOADS of sugar AND honey, and processing it all through a meat grinder! (The meat grinder never sees meat, by the way.)

This year I can't wait to try the Cranberry Almond Tarts that Deb posted recently at Smitten Kitchen.
http://smittenkitchen.com/2007/10/cranberry-caramel-and-almond-tart/

A family favorite at our house. Recipe comes from a Sacramento Bee article, Nov. 2001, "Countdown to Turkey Day," one of several do-ahead ideas for Thanksgiving.
Best Cranberry Chutney
Serves Makes 8 cups, or 4-2 cup jars
Ingredients:

• 1 can (16 oz) peach halves, packed in syrup
• 1 pkg. (12 oz) fresh or frozen cranberries
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 cup pecan halves
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon dry ginger

Drain the peaches, chop coarsely, and reserve the juice. Place cranberries, sugar, peach juice and onion in a saucepan over medium high heat and cook until cranberries begin to pop. Add pecans, cinnamon, ginger and peaches and cook 10 minutes longer.

Remove from the heat and allow to cool. Pack into 4 2-cup sterilized jars. This keeps in the refrigerator for 2 months or can be frozen.

Per 1/4 cup: 76 cal.; 0 g. pro; 14 g carb; 2 g. fat; 0 mg. Chol; 1 mg sod; 1 g fiber; 13 g sugar; 26 % cal from fat.

Elise,
Thanks for including my cranberry crostata in your post. I'm going to check out all the other cranberry recipes now--I can't get enough of them this year.

Sorry, but this is really the BEST cranberry chutney:)))

-1 can of mango in syrup, 14 oz, chopped
-1 bag fresh or frozen cranberries, 12 oz
-1 cup red pepper, finely diced
-1 cup onion, finely diced
-2/3 cup brown sugar, packed
-1/2 cup dark California raisins
-1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
-1 Tbsp grated gingerroot
-1 tsp yellow mustard seed
-1 tsp dried crushed chillies
-1/2 tsp ground coriander
-1 tsp salt
-1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
-strip of lemon peel, 4 inches in length

Combine all 14 ingredients in a large pot or a Dutch oven. Bring to a boil on medium. Reduce heat to medium low. Simmer, uncovered, for 40 to 60 minutes or until thickened. Stir at regular intervals to prevent the chutney from sticking to bottom of pan. Remove from heat and discard the lemon peel. Store in the refrigerator for up to 4 weeks. This makes 4 cups and freezes very well.

Next time you make a vanilla or lemon pot de creme, you should really serve it with this Cranberry Port Compote. It has just the right amount of tang to counter the richness of the pot de creme. Of course, a small dollop of whipped cream over the top of the compote works wonders on the taste buds as well:))) I am sure this would be divine over some homemade vanilla icecream as well.

- 1 cup ruby port
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cinammon stick, around 3 inches long
- 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries

In a saucepan, bring port, sugar and cinnamon stick to a boil over medium heat. Boil until syrupy and reduced to about 2/3 cup, around 13 minutes. Add cranberries, simmer, stirring occasionally, until they split and look slightly wrinkled but are still whole, about 6 minutes. Cool.

To use, put about 1 heaping tablespoon over an individual pot de creme that has been baked in a 6 oz ramekin. Put on a dollop of whipped cream and die:)))

There is really nothing like an Apple Crisp with cranberries in it. It adds such an excellent tartness to the crisp.

I really envy your multiple seasons. That description of cool weather and rainy skies has me wishing I were anywhere but Southeast Texas right now. Sounds amazing.

ooh and ahh. I love cranberries! Cannot wait to try these temptations myself. You just made my visual day as I trudge back to accumulated desk work in the studio... grateful very grateful, merci.
All best , Jan

Here's an easy, but delicious, recipe:

Cranberry-Pear Relish
(Makes about 3 1/4 cups)

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3 cups fresh cranberries
2 medium pears, cored and cubed (about 2 cups)
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Combine sugar and 1/2 cup water in large saucepan. Bring to boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Boil rapidly, uncovered, for 5 minutes.

Add cranberries, pears, nugmeg, allspice and cinnamon. Return to boiling. Cook 3 to 4 minutes until cranberry skins pop open; stirring often. Remove from heat.

Allow mixture to cool off some and then transfer to a clear glass bowl*. Cover and chill.

*Serving relish in a clear glass dish shows off its vivid red color.

Enjoy - I get rave reviews every time I serve this relish.

Mmmm...I've been in the mood for cranberry-infused food since watching the Iron Chef a few nights ago (they were the secret ingredient). Thanks for all of the great ideas!

I made the Cranberry and Apple Kuchen from The French Laundry Cookbook over the weekend and it's so easy, and beyond outstanding. You make the traditional kuchen batter, put it into a round cake pan, then top if with cored, peeled, sliced apples and cranberries. Sprinkle it with sugar and cinnamon and bake it in a 350 oven for about 45 minutes. Serve it with a hot cream sauce, and it's delicious!

My husband makes these wonderful cranberry orange spiral cookies. He once took them somewhere and someone asked if they were Pepperidge Farm. They were wanting to know where they could buy them:) Here's his recipe. I don't know where he got it.

1/2 cup butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1.5 cups (7.5 oz) flour
1/4 t baking powder
1/8 t salt
9 oz (2.5 cups) cranberries (fresh or frozen)
1/2 t orange oil (or 1 T grated orange peel)
2/3 cup brown sugar

Cream butter and sugar. Beat in egg and vanilla until light and
fluffy. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add to
creamed mixture. Refrigerate dough for one to two hours.

Grind fresh or frozen cranberries in a food processor. Mix together
ground cranberries, orange oil, and brown sugar. If using frozen
cranberries, be sure that the cranberries thaw completely before
proceeding, or they may freeze the dough.

Roll out refrigerated dough on floured pastry board creating a large
rectangle (10 inches by 14 inches). Spread cranberry mixture over the
dough, leaving a 1/4 inch border at one narrow end and a 1 inch border
at the other end. Beginning at a narrow end with the 1/4 inch border,
roll in tight 10 inch long jelly roll. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap
and slide the roll into two drinking glasses to keep the round shape.
Freeze overnight, seam side down.

Preheat oven to 375. Grease cookie sheets or line them with
parchment. Cut frozen roll into 1/4 inch slices and place 2 inches
apart. If any big chunks of the cranberry mixture are on the outside
of a cookie, they may burn during cooking; scrape the cookies clean
either before or after slicing them. Bake 12-15 minutes or until
edges are lightly browned. Allow cookies to cool for a few minutes,
then remove them to racks and let them cool upside down. Do not store
them touching each other, or they may stick together.

I'm with your dad. I adore cranberries. Of course, having grown up in RI, I didn't have much choice in the matter. I don't have my recipes with me now, but I love cranberry and pear chutney, cranberry and dried cherry sauce, cranberry and orange bread, and cranberry smoothies--they really wake you up!

My mom's cranberry-orange bread, which is really just a recipe from the "Silver Palate," (or the New Basics, one of those Sheila Lukins ones).
When I lived in the Middle East I realized how wonderful and unique cranberries were.

I just posted my family's recipe for Cranberry Ice, a combination sherbet/granita that is always served with the main meal at Thanksgiving and Christmas (and never INSTEAD of dessert). Bonus - no ice cream maker needed. http://krisapolis.blogspot.com/2007/11/cranberry-ice.html

My family blanches fresh cranberries and then covers them in white chocolate. The combo of tart and sweet is delicious and it looks elegant in a silver bowl.

Cranberries make foodies 'come out of the woodwork' during the holidays ... Is it the haunting tartness or memories? Cranberry Cobbler, torte, salmon, cookies, salsa, margaritas, etc. At this time of year, I can't get enough!

Thanks for your tempting posts ... mine are also FILLED with cranberry recipes ... sharing an 'all-time favorite' (adapted 20 years ago from Elizabeth's in Northville, Michigan)

Cranberry Cobbler

2 (12 ounce) bags washed and stemmed cranberries
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 cup fresh orange juice
zest of 2 oranges

Streusel topping:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
1/4 cup hard unsalted butter

Combine cranberries, sugar and orange juice in saucepan. Simmer until cranberry skins pop. Cook 7 to 10 minutes, just until tender (don't let them lose their shape.) Add orange zest.
Knead ingredients for streusel topping until coarse crumb-like. Empty cranberry mix into 9 x 13 casserole or pan. When cool, cover with topping and pop under broiler for about one minute or until browned. (serves 6-8)

Serve with a heaping mound of vanilla, cinnamon, or ginger ice-cream.

I love cranberries, though I've only bought them fresh once, which was last year. I'm really really gonna hunt them down this year to use them in cooking. Can't wait for them to hit the supermarkets here.

I like to use them in salads. A little tart but I love sourish stuff =) but they're really nice baked too. Last year I tried the cranberry nut bread you have in your archives and made a jam out of the rest.

As a Texan living in Minnesota, sometimes spicy jalepenos are hard to find, but when I do, combined w/fresh cranberries, this chutney is my favorite at this time of year. This recipe was in the Star Tribune several years ago:

Cranberry, Ginger & Lemon Chutney
1 medium lemon
1 12 oz bag fresh (or frozen) cranberries
2 c sugar
1/2 c diced crystallized ginger (abt 2.5 oz)
1/3 c finely chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1 jalepeno, seeded (sort of), minced
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1/2 tsp salt

Grate the yellow zest from the lemon & discard the thick white pith. Cut lemon crosswise in half & pick out seeds w/tip of knife. Dice lemon into 1/4" thick pieces.
Combine lemon zest & lemon pieces w/cranberries, sugar, ginger, onion, garlic jalepeno, cinnamon, mustard & salt in a medium non-reactive saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often to help dissolve the sugar. Reduce heat to low & simmer until the sauce is thick & the berries have burst, 10-15 minutes. Cool completely.
Remove the cinnamon stick just before serving. Serve at room temp; makes about 3 yummy cups.

I wrote an article last year for Cooking Light on cranberries, and I think I'll be making the cranberry orange ginger chutney and cranberry vinaigrette again this year. They're such a magnifcent berry!

I am looking for a cranberry steamed pudding recipe. My grandmother used to make it. It's to die for. Thanks for helping,

Betty