Tag Archives: Cranberries

Be Merry with Cranberries

Cranberries

Use fresh cranberries in these innovative recipes from the National Center for Home Food Preservation (NCHFP) to spice up your holiday meals. The yields will provide you with some for now, some for later, and some to give away! Elizabeth Andress, Director of the NCHFP, had this to say about these exciting recipes, “Both of these can be made during cranberry season and used as delightful homemade gifts.”

Cranberry Orange Chutney stands on its own as a side dish, or can be spooned over or basted into ham, turkey, chicken, or pork. Cranberries have so much natural pectin that the final product is almost jellied.  Raisins add texture to tang from orange juice and zest, while the warm spice of ginger and cinnamon round out the overall flavor. You could add small amounts of other dried spices if you like, such as cloves, dry mustard, or cayenne pepper. After it’s made, chutney will continue to set over the next 24 hours, but you can eat it once it cools down. Store un-canned chutney in clean storage containers and refrigerate. Remember to also refrigerate opened jars if you don’t finish it all at once.

Spicy Cranberry Salsa brings something new to the table by essentially switching out tomatoes for cranberries. The flavor is highlighted by Serrano peppers and honey. Use this salsa as a dip for chips, as a side with meat, or as a spread stirred into cream cheese. This recipe, procedure, and process time are also available in Spanish.

Loose cranberries

This entry was inspired by an article written by April Reese Sorrow and Elizabeth L. Andress for the National Center for Home Food Preservation.

Cranberry Conserve

cranberries in (and out of) bowl

Since you can still find fresh cranberries at some stores, here’s a Cranberry Conserve recipe from So Easy to Preserve that makes a more hearty treat out of a classic wintertime favorite. Make and enjoy- before it’s too late!

Cranberry Conserve

  • 1 unpeeled, finely chopped orange
  • 1 cup water
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 1 quart cranberries, washed
  • ½ cup seedless raisins
  • ½ cup chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans make a tasty choice)

Yield: About 4 half-pint jars

Please read Using Boiling Water Canners before beginning. If this is your first time canning, it is recommended that you read Principles of Home Canning.

Procedure: Combine orange and water; cook rapidly until peel is tender (about 20 minutes). Add cranberries, sugar and raisins. Bring slowly to boiling, stirring occasionally until sugar dissolves. Cook rapidly, almost to the jellying point of 220°F (about 8 minutes). As mixture thickens, stir frequently to prevent sticking. Add nuts during the last 5 minutes of cooking. Pour hot conserve into hot jars, leaving ¼-inch headspace. Wipe rims of jars with a dampened clean paper towel; apply two-piece metal canning lids. Process in a Boiling Water Canner.

Table 1. Recommended process time for Cranberry Conserve in a boiling water canner.
Process Time at Altitudes of
Style of Pack Jar Size 0 – 1,000 ft 1,001 – 6,000 ft Above 6,000 ft
Hot Half-pints 10 min 15 20

more cranberries

Simple Cranberry Sauce Variations

The traditional Thanksgiving meal of turkey with all the trimmings is now past for 2012. Your trimmings may have included the cranberry sauce just as they do for so many families. Cranberries are still in season, and provide a note of tart combined with sweet to compliment many foods as well as turkey and dressing. These weeks between our fall and winter holidays make a good time to still use cranberries. You can can a delightfully simple sauce to use with your holiday meals or for a homemade gift to show others you care. Especially good for beginning home canners, our cranberry sauce is very easy. Whether you prefer whole, crushed, or jelly-style, this cranberry sauce recipe has variations that will be a delightful trimming on the holiday menu and perfect for those delicious sandwiches made from leftover turkey.

Find the full recipe on the National Center for Home Food Preservation website, or view an abbreviated version below.

Here you’ll find three variations of a basic cranberry sauce recipe: whole, crushed, or sieved berries. Have no fear, each of these variations have been tested for safety, appearance, and deliciousness.

If this happens to be your first time canning, it’s recommended that you read Principles of Home Canning. Even if you’ve canned before, please refresh your memory and get up to date on the latest recommendations from USDA by reading Using Boiling Water Canners before beginning.

Cranberry Sauce

Yield:  About 4 half-pint jars (recipe may be doubled)

  • 4 cups cranberries
  • 1 cup water
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1/2 tsp butter (opt.)

Make a Hot Pack – Wash cranberries. Cook berries in water until soft. To reduce foaming, add ½ teaspoon of butter (optional). Now here’s your choice: gently stir whole berries, crush with a potato masher or the back of a cooking spoon until desired consistency, or press through a fine sieve. Whichever you choose, add sugar and boil 3 minutes. Pour boiling hot sauce into hot jars, leaving ½-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace if needed. Wipe rims of jars with a dampened clean paper towel; adjust two-piece metal canning lids. Process in a Boiling Water Canner; refer to the table below to determine processing time.

Table 1. Recommended process time for Cranberry Sauce in a boiling-water canner.
Process Time at Altitudes of
Style of Pack Jar Size 0 – 1,000 ft 1,001 – 3,000 ft 3,001 – 6,000 ft Above 6,000 ft
Hot

Half-pints

Pints

 15 min

15 min

20 min

20 min

20 min

20 min

25 min

25 min

For original article, go to the National Center for Home Food Preservation website.