Cranberry Quick Bread

3 Comments December 15, 2025 terrie gura

It’s a question that has always piled on stress, and one that is virtually inescapable this time of year, asked by friends and strangers alike.

“Are you ready for Christmas?”

And this year, I actually am! Not for having crossed off a multitude of items on a gift list or for having my proverbial ducks in a row for holiday entertaining or gathering or what-have-you. Nope, this year I’m “ready” because my husband and I made a conscious decision to forgo most of the hubbub that is typically associated with the holiday season. You could say that we are quiet-quitting Christmas. Except for the tree!

I bought new lights this year, and they are convertible from white to multi-color. Loving this!

Our tree is all we’ve done so far this year, and it’s simple. We are not the family who has a perfectly color-matched tree, nor do we want to be. Our tree has a hodgepodge of trimmings, many of which symbolize memories we’ve made since we’ve been together, and others that were gifted to me by my maternal grandmother as long ago as 1972!

We will exchange small gifts, and I’ll go overboard for the pets, but there isn’t a darn thing we need. Instead of the hustle and bustle involved in “finding the perfect gifts,” we are taking time to enjoy being together, and doing fun things that improve our moods, such as watching holiday-themed films, sipping hot cocoa by our patio fire and— you knew this was coming— cooking and baking!

Nice enough for company, but easy enough for an average Tuesday!

I’ll never ever say that the food of the holidays is too much trouble, and this seasonal combination of cranberry and orange is one of my all-time favorites. My first instinct was to make a challah, featuring dried cranberries and candied orange (as I shared back in 2022), but to keep things sweet and simple, I decided on a quick bread instead. It’s been forever since I made one, and the King Arthur Baking site, my go-to resource for all things baking, had a recipe that satisfied most of my intentions. I embellished their recipe, adding a touch of orange oil (because I didn’t have a fresh orange for zest) and subbing in a portion of white whole wheat (because it’s what I always do).

Fresh chopped cranberries give this bread bright, holiday flavor!

The glaze was simple, too— just powdered sugar, fresh orange juice (by that time, I had made a grocery run) and just enough Grand Marnier to make it feel extra special.

Next time, I’ll make more icing so that I can do additional taste tests. 😉

Now, if I can get through the rest of the holidays with this much ease, I’ll be golden! How about you?

Cranberry Quick Bread

Servings: 10 slices
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 55 minutes
Difficulty: Easy!
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This is my adaptation of a King Arthur Baking recipe. The fresh cranberries and bright citrus flavor are perfect for the holiday season, and the bread is elegant enough for company but easy enough for a weeknight.

Ingredients

8 tablespoons (one stick) salted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup (149g) granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 cup (120g) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
3/4 cup (90g) King Arthur Golden Wheat Flour (formerly called White Whole Wheat)
1 teaspoon baking powder (see notes to test its activity)
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup (113g) milk
1 teaspoon King Arthur Pure Vanilla Extract
1/2 teaspoon orange oil or extract (see notes)
1 cup (most of a bag) fresh cranberries, roughly chopped
3/4 cup (85g) confectioners’ sugar
1 tablespoon (14g) fresh orange juice
2 teaspoons Grand Marnier orange liqueur (optional, or use extra juice)

Notes: Has it been a while since you used your baking powder? You can test it for freshness by measuring 1/2 teaspoon into a bowl, and then add a few tablespoons of boiling water. If it bubbles up and makes a fuss, it’s good. If not, it is past its prime and should be replaced. Better to know before you bake!

I’m the weirdo who has orange oil but not fresh oranges. If you have a fresh orange, wash it well and use a microplane or the small holes of a box grater to shave all of the bright orange zest. If you really love citrus, use both!

Directions

Preheat oven to 350° F, with oven rack in center position. Lightly grease a standard loaf pan and set aside.
Use an electric hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with the beater blade to cream the butter and sugar together. This mixture should be soft and somewhat fluffy.
Whisk together flours, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. Whisk together milk, eggs, vanilla and orange oil (or zest).
With mixer running on low speed, blend in the flour and liquid ingredients, alternating and scraping down the bowl as you go.
When the batter is evenly blended, gently fold in the chopped cranberries. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan, using a spatula to smooth the top.
Bake 50 to 60 minutes, or until cake passes the toothpick test. Cool in the pan for a few minutes, then carefully transfer the cake to a rack to cool completely.
Mix glaze ingredients together until smooth; drizzle and spread over top of quick bread.

Sparkling Fresh Cranberry-Ginger Cosmo

19 Comments December 7, 2024 terrie gura

I know I promised you a cocktail before Thanksgiving, and I should know by now that late November is not the time to make promises I might not be able to keep. 🤷🏻‍♀️ Better late than never, and it’s all good because what I’m about to share with you could be the holiday miracle your entertaining plans have been waiting for. This drink became an accidental star at our Thanksgiving happy hour, and the great news is that its seasonal flavors and fancy presentation make it perfect for all the holidays coming up.

I found this inspiration quite unexpectedly while scrolling Instagram in the wee hours, as I am wont to do. A few days before Thanksgiving, Food Network had posted a slideshow of recipes offered by its celeb chefs. There were variations on casseroles and desserts and—oh, who am I kidding? I have no idea what else was in the photo carousel because the fresh cranberry cosmo stopped me dead in my tracks. The ingredient list was simple, the technique brilliant and the drink divine.

It was star chef Alton Brown who presented the formula for the cranberry granita that is the base of this stunning, neon-colored drink, and the granita itself could be served as a palate cleanser or even a light dessert after a rich holiday meal. His granita was made by simmering fresh cranberries, sugar and lime zest in a fair amount of water, and then blending, straining and freezing. Later, he used a fork to shred the icy mixture into a substance not unlike a snow-cone. That granita mixture is then shaken with vodka and fresh lime juice— no additional ice necessary— and strained into a martini glass for the brightest, freshest seasonal cocktail I’ve ever enjoyed.

Of course, I couldn’t leave it at that (do ya know me?), and Alton himself is partly to blame for my tendency to twist a classic. During the early aughts, I hardly missed an episode of his “Good Eats” program on Food Network, and that was unquestionably when I became fascinated with the science of food and drink, inspiring me to push the culinary boundaries in my own kitchen. So, Alton, I’ll see your cranberry granita and I’ll raise you some crystallized ginger and orange zest. Because, Christmas. 🎁

Cranberry, ginger, citrus. It even *smells* like the holidays!

You don’t want to know how many spoons I used tasting this stuff along the way, nor how many sample cosmos I made for myself, just to be sure I wasn’t imagining how good it was. The cranberry-ginger granita is equally tart and sweet, and my mind is still racing with possibilities for drinks beyond this festive cosmo. Imagine swapping the vodka for blanco tequila— instant Christmas margarita! Or substitute white rum for a cranberry-ginger daiquiri. Seriously, can anyone give me one reason not to mix it with gin and lemon and top it with champagne for a cranberry-ginger French 75? Could this be the little black dress of the holiday cocktail season?

For that matter, I should also be able to sub something non-alcoholic for a tasty mocktail to delight non-drinkers at my party, right? I did that for one of our Thanksgiving guests, and I guarantee you can’t tell which of these glasses held the zero-proof drink. She said it was delicious.

Making this sparkling fresh cranberry-ginger cosmo couldn’t be easier, and I’ll also share my tips for the mocktail in the click-to-print recipe card you’ll find at the bottom of the post. Start by making the granita a few days before you plan to entertain, and wash up several fresh limes so they are ready for happy hour. Plan on one lime for every two drinks; you’ll use the juice in the drinks and a strip of zest for garnish. And for a little extra holiday pizzazz, pick up a four-pack of blood orange ginger beer to top off your cocktails with a sparkly finish. Chill your cocktail glasses while you mix, and use a fine mesh strainer if you don’t want little bits of zest floating in your glass.

A channel knife is great for making a zest strip.
Otherwise, use a potato peeler and trim with a sharp knife.

Sparkling Fresh Cranberry Cosmo

Servings: 1 cocktail
Prep Time: 5 minutes, plus 8 hours to freeze the granita
Difficulty: Easy
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This gorgeous holiday drink uses a make-ahead cranberry-ginger granita that is so delicious, you'll want to use it in other drinks, too!

Ingredients

1 1/2 oz. Ketel One (or other premium) vodka
2 1/2 oz. cranberry-ginger granita (recipe follows)
1/2 oz. freshly squeezed lime juice
1 oz. Fever Tree blood orange ginger beer (or regular ginger beer, if desired)
lime zest twist to garnish

Notes: Make the cranberry-ginger granita ahead of time, and transfer to airtight containers in your freezer for safekeeping. I recommend using a fine-mesh strainer when pouring the drink into the glass, unless you’re OK with having the zest bits floating in the drink.

For an easy mocktail, swap in Simply Lemonade for the vodka, use 1/4 oz. lime juice and increase the ginger beer a bit. When making both alcohol and non-alcohol drinks for party guests, consider using two separate shakers to avoid mixups and in-between cleanings.

Directions

Chill cocktail glass with ice water, or place in freezer 20 minutes before mixing the drinks.
Measure vodka, granita and lime juice into a shaker. Cover and shake the shake out of it until the thing is too frosty to hold comfortably. The granita will melt with the other ingredients, so no ice is required for this step.
Strain into the glass, top off with ginger beer and garnish with the lime strip.

Notes: The cranberry-ginger granita will be enough for about 20 cocktails. Make it ahead and keep it in the freezer so it’s ready for all the holidays.

Ingredients

3 cups water
2 1/4 cups fresh whole cranberries
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons organic cane sugar
2 tablespoons minced crystallized ginger
Zest of one lime and half an orange (organic is best and washed thoroughly)

Directions

1. Combine water, cranberries, sugar and ginger in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and then simmer for several minutes until the berries soften and split. Remove from heat and cool for a few minutes.
2. Transfer cranberry mixture to a blender (remove vent cover) or use an immersion blender to puree the mixture into a slurry. Pour through a mesh strainer into an oblong, shallow pan. I used a silicone scraper to gently move the puree back and forth on the strainer surface, as the pectin from the berries was quite heavy.
3. Stir in the citrus zest. Cover with plastic wrap and place the pan flat in the freezer for several hours until solid (overnight is fine).
4. Use a fork to scrape the surface of the mixture until you have multiple layers of icy granita. Note that the mixture will likely clump as it refreezes. If you want it to be uniform consistency for cocktail hour, transfer it to a food processor and pulse a few times.

Directions

Sweet and Savory Cranberry Chutney

11 Comments November 12, 2023 terrie gura

A few weeks ago, as I was rummaging through my little black recipe box, I ran across a yellowed snippet I cut out years ago from one of those old-school women’s magazines perched at the grocery store checkout. This is a long-time habit of mine— hoarding recipes— and I’m only slightly embarrassed to admit that I frequently don’t get around to making the things that intrigue me enough to impulse-buy a magazine or cookbook. Or if I do make one of these recipes, I change it up so much that it barely resembles the thing that caught my eye in the first place. Blogging has changed me for the better, though, and I’ve been revisiting my box full of clippings, even creating a culinary bucket list of things to try.

I have finally gotten around to this cranberry chutney, and for the life of me, I don’t know why I waited so long. It’s absolutely delicious! With a few adjustments (of course).

Chutney is a condiment that I only experienced in my adult years, and I appreciate it for many reasons. In addition to the warm spice flavors of India and competing notes of sweet and tart, there’s a texture element to chutney that I find most addictive. It certainly doesn’t hurt that chutney is a lovely complement to meat and vegetable dishes, and with cranberry in the spotlight, this one feels perfect for all the food holidays barreling down on us. I’m always on the lookout for an interesting twist on classic foods, and I can promise you this ruby-colored condiment will be on our Thanksgiving table, but it was also really dang good last week on my second go-round of Thanksgiving burgers.

Let’s go ahead and talk about the adjustments I made to the magazine recipe (I can’t help myself), and if you enjoy chutney as I do, I bet you’ll agree that these were necessary.

First, I knew straightaway that I would add onions to my version of this chutney, because I love the little crunch next to the tender cooked fruit and I wanted a gentle push-pull of sweet and savory in one bite. Every chutney I’ve ever loved had onions, and though sweet or even red onion would have worked fine, I chopped up a medium shallot for this. The magazine recipe had plenty of sweetness with dried figs and chopped oranges plus sugar. The fresh cranberries contributed a tart contrast, and cider vinegar gave it a slightly “pickled” flavor. The recipe called for sherry, and since I do not buy “cooking wines,” I used a generous splash of a high quality Spanish drinking sherry. It’s the holidays, why not?

Then came the spices, and I had to improvise a bit here because I also don’t buy curry powder. It’s one of those blends that is different from one brand to the next, but I know enough about Indian flavors to estimate which ones belonged in this recipe. So I made up my own “curry” blend on the spot, with a few shakes each of cumin, turmeric, cardamom and cayenne, plus some freshly crushed coriander seed for a citrusy complexity. The recipe also suggested cinnamon and allspice, and those were easy. Ground ginger also stepped up in place of fresh, which I never seem to have when I need it.

The aroma of this concoction was instantly intoxicating, and as I began to stir, it hit me that I didn’t notice on the magazine recipe one very important ingredient. I had to look again to be sure— do you see what’s missing?

Salt, of course! Now, this may have been an oversight, or perhaps the author assumed that the reader would know to include it. This is one of the things I griped about in my post about the problem with recipes, and why I insisted that one still must know how to cook even when following a recipe. Even if this was meant to be just a “sweet” chutney, it should still have at least a pinch of salt to highlight the amazing flavors of the other ingredients. So, salt it I did.

Twenty minutes later, I had this gorgeous, sweet and savory cranberry chutney. The oranges cooked down and took on the red color of the cranberries. The shallots were still a bit crunchy, the figs were delicate and chewy, and the spice aroma was just perfect.

I’m glad I didn’t put this one off another year. It’ll be great with my roast turkey, and my taste buds want it with pork chops, salmon and chicken, too. Will you be throwing a twist onto any Thanksgiving classics this year? Let’s hear about it in the comments, just below the click-to-print recipe card. As always, feel free to adjust to taste. 😉

Sweet & Savory Cranberry Chutney

Servings: About 8
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Difficulty: Easy
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This mouthwatering chutney brings a Thanksgiving classic together with warm Indian spices and crunchy bits of onion, making it a fantastic sidekick to pork, chicken, fish and (of course) roasted turkey!

Ingredients

1 cup fresh cranberries, rinsed and picked over for duds
1/2 cup dried mission figs, stems removed and coarsely chopped
1/2 fresh navel orange, peeled and chopped
1 medium shallot, minced
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 1/2 Tablespoons cider vinegar
2 Tablespoons sherry (optional)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (mine was smoked)
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground coriander (a similar amount of crushed seeds)
two shakes each ground cumin, cardamom, turmeric and cayenne* (see recipe notes)
two or three shakes ground allspice
a generous pinch of kosher salt

Notes: If you have a curry powder blend, 1/4 teaspoon of it will suffice in place of the cumin, cardamom, turmeric and cayenne listed above.

This was my first time making this wonderful chutney, so my ingredients represent a half-batch, which was enough to fill a jelly jar. Next time, you can bet I’ll make a whole batch!

Directions

Combine cranberries, oranges, figs and shallots in a small saucepan.
Add sugar, vinegar, sherry and spices (plus salt) and toss to distribute the spices. Cook over medium heat until the mixture comes to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 20 minutes. As the cranberries soften, use the back of your mixing spoon to gently smash them.
Allow chutney to cool to room temperature (it will thicken as it cools), and then transfer it to a clean jar to store in the refrigerator.

Fig Butter Cranberry Apple Galette

11 Comments December 12, 2022 terrie gura

I am good at a few things in the kitchen, but pie crust is not one of them. I can make the pastry dough, no problem, and I usually use the food processor to speed things along. Getting the thing inside the pan in one piece, especially for a deep dish pie, is quite another story. Yes, I have seen all the tricks, from folding it into quadrants and then unfolding it into the pan, to rolling it up around the rolling pin and transferring it that way. The problem is, by the time I finish monkeying around with patching cracks and moving it (especially if it sticks to my roll-out surface and it always does), I have usually either let it get too warm so that it loses its flakiness or I have overworked the dough to the point that it becomes tough rather than tender.

Thank goodness for this easy-peasy alternative— the galette!

At first glance, a galette might seem like a fancy-schmancy dessert. Not quite a tart, which usually has egg in the pastry dough and requires a special shallow, fluted pan. Also not quite a pie because it only has one piece of pastry, there’s no blind baking involved and it doesn’t require a pie pan at all. Just a cookie sheet or pizza pan, and almost everyone has one of those.

This rustic dessert has all the familiar comfort factor of a pie, but without the fuss. You roll the dough out directly onto parchment, then add your filling, fold up the edges and slide the whole thing right onto your baking sheet. I would not recommend trying a galette for a pie that requires any kind of loose, wet filling, but for uncooked apple slices and raw cranberries, the stars of this dessert, it was perfect.

I ended up using only three of the apples and still had a few slices left over.

My recipe is adapted from one that King Arthur Baking Company released just before Thanksgiving. Their version was called Apple Butter Apple Galette, and it did not include cranberries or the tiny flecks of fresh rosemary that I added to adorn the outside of the pastry. I swapped out cinnamon for cardamom because I love the flavor with apples, and I didn’t have apple butter on hand (nor the time to make my own), so I subbed in pre-made fig butter from Trader Joe’s. King Arthur’s recipe already calls for mostly whole wheat flour in the pastry, which makes the dessert feel even more rustic and fall-like.

The pastry dough itself is somewhat unusual as there is no water in the mix; rather, the typical cold butter-and-flour mixture is moistened with sour cream, of all things. That inclusion lent a tangy note that was a nice contrast to the slight sweetness of the apple-cranberry filling. The dough needs a good long rest in the fridge, so it’s best to make it the night before and then shape it up when you have the filling ready.

Shaping the dough goes about the same as any pie crust. It helps to use the end of a rolling pin to slightly beat the dough disk into a slightly flattened shape first, then roll it out onto parchment paper for final assembly of the galette.

The fig butter is spread out onto the rolled pastry, serving as a base for the apple filling. The apples, which I didn’t even bother to peel, were halved top to bottom, then sliced into half-rings for even appearance and easy arranging. A little lemon juice preserved the color and a good sprinkling with maple sugar and a bit of cardamom added warmth and sweetness. I tucked in the cranberries here and there, including up under a few edges of the folded-up pastry dough, and dotted it with butter, just as you would with an apple pie. A little egg wash and the sugar-rosemary embellishment, and off it went into the oven!

A galette feels fancy and elegant but is ridiculously easy to make!

This was a terrific dessert that would work for any meal during the rest of the holiday season. The fig butter, apples and cranberries were a great combination. The sparkling sugar and rosemary made it festive enough to serve for a special meal, but it would be equally nice for a casual weeknight dinner.

Fig Butter Cranberry Apple Galette

Servings: 8
Prep Time: 30 minutes, plus dough chilling time
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Difficulty: Average
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Not quite a tart and not quite a pie, a galette is a quick and simple, rustic dessert, and this fig-apple-cranberry combo is just right for the holidays!

Ingredients

1 cup (113g) King Arthur White Whole Wheat Flour
1/2 cup (60g) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (170g) unsalted butter, cold; cut into 1/2″ cubes
6 tablespoons (85g) sour cream

Ingredients

3 medium apples, peeled (or not) and sliced about 1/8″ thick
juice of 1/2 lemon (about 1 tablespoon)
2 Tbsp. light brown sugar or maple sugar (see ingredient note below)
1/4 tsp. ground cardamom
pinch of salt
1/2 cup prepared fig butter
1/2 cup fresh (or frozen) cranberries
1 tablespoon cold butter, cubed
1 large egg, beaten with 1 tsp. cold water (egg wash)
coarse sparkling sugar
1 tsp. finely chopped fresh rosemary

Ingredient note: Adjust sugar to taste, depending on the sweetness of your apples. I used Granny Smith and Arkansas Black, both of which are crisp and tart, so I amped up the sugar a bit. If you are using sweeter apples, feel free to back off the sugar accordingly.

Directions

For the pastry dough, combine flours, sugar and salt in a bowl. Pinch cold butter cubes into the flour mix until the whole bowl is filled with crumbs ranging from pea-size to almond-size. Add cold sour cream and blend with a fork just until evenly blended. Shape the pastry dough into a composed disk and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Roll the edges along the counter to seal it for easier rolling later. Refrigerate overnight.
Preheat oven to 425 F, with oven rack in center position. Prepare apples and squeeze lemon juice over them, tossing to help prevent browning. Sprinkle with brown sugar, salt and ground cardamom. Toss to distribute.
Unwrap pastry dough and place it on a lightly floured countertop. Use the end of a rolling pin to gently “pound” the disk so that it flattens slightly. Transfer pastry to parchment paper and roll it out to about 1/8″ inch thickness, approximately 14″ across.
Spread fig butter evenly over pastry dough, to about 1 inch from the edges of pastry dough. Arrange sugared apple slices in concentric circles over the fig butter, approximately 3 inches from the edges. Make radial cuts, about 3 inches apart, from the outer edge of the pastry dough toward the apple filling.
Fold up cut edges of the galette, overlapping as needed to close up the pastry over the filling. Tuck fresh cranberries into layers of apple and under edges of the pastry. Place galette in freezer for 10 minutes to re-chill pastry dough.
Arrange dots of cold butter over the sliced apples. Brush egg wash all over exposed pastry. Sprinkle with sparkling sugar and minced rosemary.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until pastry is deep golden brown all over and apples are tender when pierced with a fork.
Cool to room temperature. Cut into wedges and serve with ice cream or whipped cream.

My Grandpa’s Cranberry Jell-O Salad

6 Comments December 2, 2022 terrie gura

I know, I know— Jell-O?

This is exactly the kind of recipe I swore that I would never post on Comfort du Jour. Its use of pre-packaged, artificially flavored and colored gelatin goes against every culinary instinct in my being and I hope you don’t see me as a food snob for saying so. After more than two decades of avoiding highly processed foods (like, um, Jell-O), my body gets raging mad over even a taste of artificial ingredients— usually with a display of symptoms ranging from inflammation and painful joints to headaches and digestive upset. It’s frustrating and kind of weird. But I am the unlucky bearer of an autoimmune disorder, and I just have to deal with it.

They’re trying really hard to make this seem like a health food. News flash: it ain’t!

Despite all of that, I made this recipe and I am sharing it for one reason only: nostalgia.

I ran across this stained, crumpled note in the depths of my recipe box when I was looking for something else last week, and it gave me “all the feels.” You see, my grandpa on my dad’s side shared this recipe with me on one of my visits to see him in his post-retired days in Florida, back when I was oblivious to the effect of the aforementioned highly processed foods. Grandpa was a real character, and I enjoyed visiting him at his home in Cocoa, visiting interesting places such as Cape Canaveral and Ron Jon (the beach shop, which he assured me was the only one of its kind). I loved touring his beautiful rose garden that he tended with fierce dedication, and getting dressed up for dinner with him at some really, ahem, “fancy” establishments.

This neon-colored, congealed mess of a “salad” is something you’d expect to see in a cafeteria line-up, and that makes a lot of sense if you knew my grandpa. He loved cafeterias and buffets, and I chuckle when I remember the time he was so excited to take me out to eat at a place that he said “serves everything you could ever imagine— steak, pasta, fried chicken, salads, ice cream— all in one restaurant!” He raved about it during the entire car ride, and then he turned into the parking lot for Golden Corral. Thank goodness some high school prom kids came in for dinner that night or I might have felt overdressed!

Sincerely, I miss his fun-loving spirit, and when I shared this recipe with my husband, he commented that it was the first time I’d mentioned my grandpa as a culinary influence. But he wasn’t, really. During the years that my passion for cooking was developing, Grandpa owned and worked on a dairy farm and in his free time (that’s a joke), he also delivered mail on a rural route. As far as I could tell, he wasn’t in the kitchen much at all, except to bring in a fresh pitcher of milk to serve with dinner. He simply didn’t have much extra time, and when he did, we enjoyed fun things like picking peaches and riding in his boat. I was his first grandchild (daughter of his eldest son), and I like to believe I was his favorite. He sure treated me like it, and I suspect that my cousins all felt the same way.

I topped my Jell-O “salad” with sweetened cream mixed with sour cream.
But if you’re fancy like my grandpa, you could use Cool Whip. 😉

It wasn’t until I was a young adult and Grandpa was retired that we started to bond over food. He had made banana bread one morning when I visited, and when I commented on the cranberry Jell-O salad in his recipe box, he told me to write down a copy. This recipe, he said, was a great way to use up leftover cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving.

I’m sure glad we had some this week. 🙂

Melt the marshmallows halfway in the hot gelatin mixture, then chill until partially set before folding in the cranberry sauce and pecans.
Chill it til firm, and cut in squares to serve.

My Grandpa's Cranberry Jell-O Salad

Servings: About 6
Prep Time: 12 minutes total
Cook Time: None, except boiling water!
Difficulty: So Easy!
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This recipe is pure nostalgia for me, shared a long time ago by my paternal grandfather. It's an easy, fun way to use up leftover cranberry sauce after Thanksgiving.

Ingredients

1 small box flavored gelatin (see ingredient note for suggestions)
1 cup boiling water
1 cup miniature marshmallows (Grandpa used the pastel multicolored ones)
1 cup ice cubes
1 cup leftover cranberry sauce (the whole berry kind)
1/2 cup chopped pecan pieces
Whipped cream for serving (optional)

Choose a gelatin flavor that will complement your cranberry sauce. If your leftover sauce is on the sweet side, raspberry gelatin works well. For pairing with a tart cranberry sauce, consider cherry, strawberry or orange.

Directions

Stir boiling water into gelatin in a medium size bowl until dissolved. Add miniature marshmallows and stir until they have melted to about half their original size. Add ice and stir to melt. Chill the mixture for about 30 minutes, until partially set.
Stir partially set gelatin to loosen it up. Fold in leftover cranberry sauce and pecans. Transfer mixture to a small square or rectangle glass dish. Smooth the top, place a cover on it and refrigerate until firm.
Cut into squares and top with a dollop of whipped cream.

Grandpa and me, sometime in the 90s. I miss him so much! ❤

Spiced Sangria Cranberry Sauce

13 Comments November 22, 2022 terrie gura

It’s been ages since I last bought cranberry sauce in a can. That high-fructose corn syrup-laden jellied stuff that goes schhhluuuup onto the plate, retaining the shape of the can, right down to the rings that I once thought were meant to help you slice it into portions. What in the world was I thinking?

Sure, I know the canned stuff is kind of a standard and it’s certainly convenient. But real, fresh cranberry sauce is so simple to make at home, and I love jazzing it up with unexpected ingredients for a different take on the classic. I have made it relish-style with chopped raw cranberries and pecans. I’ve flavored it with citrus and pomegranate. Heck, I’ve even made cranberry sauce with jalapeno and orange (that was 2020, and it was awesome).

This year, I’m sharing a version that is just for the grown-up table, marrying the tangy flavors of traditional cranberry sauce with the spicy, fruity notes of red wine sangria. It’s a little bit boozy, a touch cinnamon-y and altogether yummy.

Any red wine will work for this recipe (and it doesn’t have to be expensive), but I would recommend choosing a pinot noir or other dry wine that is described with flavors of red berries and cherries. Steer clear of heavier wines such as cabernet sauvignon, which will overpower the brightness of the cranberry. Here’s a good rule of thumb—if the wine would make a good base for sangria, it’s perfect for this cranberry sauce.

Begin by rinsing the cranberries and plucking out any bad ones. Combine them with chopped apple in a medium saucepan. Add wine, orange liqueur, cinnamon sticks and cane sugar, and cook over medium heat until the mixture begins to bubble.

When the mixture reaches a light boil, add minced sweetened orange and stir to combine. Reduce the heat and simmer for about a half hour, until berries are easily mashed and mixture is bright red. Remove it from the heat and transfer it to a bowl to cool. As the cranberry sauce cools, the natural pectins in the berries will cause it to thicken. Stir the zest of an orange and a lime into the cranberry sauce. As the cranberry sauce rests in the fridge, the red wine will stain everything deep red, but that isn’t exactly a problem for me. 😉

If your Thanksgiving day isn’t too hectic, hold the zest until serving time for a bright pop of color.

Sangria Cranberry Sauce

Servings: 6 to 8
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 to 40 minutes
Difficulty: Average
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Decked out with red wine, orange liqueur and warm, festive spices, this one should be served strictly on the grownup table!

Ingredients

12 oz. package organic cranberries, sorted and rinsed
3/4 cup turbinado sugar
1 crisp apple, such as Granny Smith, Fuji or Gala
1/2 cup dry red wine
1/4 cup orange liqueur (I used Cointreau)
2 pieces stick cinnamon, about 3 inches each
1/4 cup minced sweetened, dried oranges (such as Trader Joe’s)
Zest of one orange (organic is best when the zest is eaten)
Zest of one lime (organic)

If you wish, sprinkle additional orange and lime zests on top of the cranberry sauce at serving time for a bright pop of color.

Directions

Combine the cranberries and apples with the red wine, orange liqueur, sugar and cinnamon sticks in a medium saucepan.
Stir and cook over medium heat until the mixture begins to bubble. Add dried orange bits. Reduce heat and simmer until berries pop easily and sauce is reduced to a syrup-like consistency (anywhere from 20-30 minutes).
Remove from heat. Stir in orange and lime zests and allow the mixture to cool to room temperature. The natural pectin in the cranberries will cause the mixture to thicken more as it cools.
Refrigerate at least overnight, and up to two weeks. Remove cinnamon stick before serving.

Smoked Maple Cranhattan (a holiday signature cocktail)

12 Comments December 1, 2021 terrie gura

Holiday preparation is fun for me—all the excitement, decorating and special trimmings gives me an exuberant sense of energy. But the extra fussing can also pile on unwanted stress, and having a “signature” cocktail for the holidays relieves some of the pressure when guests will be joining the fun.

Sure, it’s nice to be able to offer up an open bar, and ours is fully stocked with everything our friends and neighbors might ask for (and a few things they probably wouldn’t—I’m looking at you, absinthe). Imagine what that would look like if I related it to other aspects of our entertaining though; say, the decorations or the table settings. Our guests don’t choose those; we decide based on the occasion. Too many drink options can overwhelm a guest and leave them standing there contemplating, when they’d probably rather just enjoy a well-thought-out adult beverage, and I’d rather be back in the kitchen putting the finishing touches on dinner.

Naturally, a few people may request their own favorite (a beer or glass of white wine, perhaps), but most of our friends enjoy the unique tipple that we put together for them, and I do my best to keep the flavors within the season. Not too strong, not too sweet, always with a special ingredient twist.

This year, I agonized over my signature cocktail, not because I fell short of ideas (as if that would ever happen in my crazy brain), but because my best experiments this year felt too similar to the signature drink last year, the Pom-Pom-Hattan. At first glance, this drink may seem almost the same, given that cranberry has a similar tartness to pomegranate and both drinks are made with bourbon. But friends, this is no ordinary bourbon, and it was pleading with me to become part of my signature drink.

Drop what you’re doing and go get a bottle of THIS.

Before I get carried away, I’d like to emphasize that this distiller is not paying endorsement fees for my shameless raving (and if they did, I’d probably just spend it on more bottles). This is just between us bourbon lovers, and it’s what friends do—share the news about great things we find. The maple notes in this bourbon are very smooth, excellent for sipping neat, and I’ve done my share so far this season. The smokiness is subtle, but present, and a little tang of cranberry (spiked with some spices) is a perfect accompaniment for a cocktail that celebrates the warmth of the holidays.

The spiced cranberry syrup takes a few minutes to make, but it’s easy.
The smoked maple bourbon and red vermouth definitely give this drink a Manhattan feel.

The ingredients are simple, though one required a bit of advance effort. Rather than use a store-bought cranberry juice (which I didn’t even consider, frankly), I made a simple syrup infused with fresh cranberries, cinnamon for warmth and pink peppercorns for depth. Simple syrup is exactly that—simple. Just equal parts by volume of sugar and water, and for this one, I added the flavor infusers long enough to draw out the color of the cranberry. The rest of the drink is very Manhattan-like; a quality brand of red vermouth and a few shakes of bitters, with a premium cocktail cherry as garnish.

At our house, we enjoyed these on Thanksgiving and again on Saturday night with appetizers before our Ultimate Thanksgiving Leftover Pizza. But just as with last year’s Pom-Pom-Hattan, I have no doubt that this smoky-sweet-tangy cocktail will carry us through all the way to New Year’s.

Ingredients (makes two cocktails)

3 oz. Knob Creek smoked maple bourbon

1.5 oz. red (sweet) vermouth

1.0 oz. spiced cranberry simple syrup

2 dashes ginger bitters

Good quality cocktail cherries, such as Luxardo brand

Instructions

Measure bourbon, vermouth, spiced cranberry syrup and bitters into a mixing glass or shaker. Add one cup of ice and stir well for about 20 seconds. Strain into coupe (or martini) cocktail glasses and garnish each with a cherry.

Repeat as desired.

Spiced Cranberry Simple Syrup

My confession is that my first attempt at the simple syrup was not great. Cranberries contain a lot of pectin, and I let them simmer a bit too long, releasing all that thickener. It did not taste bad, but left an odd, almost sticky residue in my drink (serves me right for multi-tasking). Keep a close watch over it, as I did with the second batch, and it will be delicious!

It doesn’t take long to dissolve the sugar into the water. Give it a few good stirs along the way.
Pink peppercorns have a slight bite to them, and the fruity notes of the pepper put a bit of an edge on the cranberry syrup.
The cranberries take time to soften, and eventually they will burst open, releasing their flavor and pretty color.
Simmer until the syrup has a prominent flavor, then remove from heat and cool before straining.
My first batch of syrup seemed a little pulpy. Cranberries have a ton of pectin in them.
Even after double-straining, my syrup was too thick and pulpy. Lessons learned…
For the second go-round, I had the idea to toss in a stick of cinnamon for even more holiday flavor.
This time, I was careful to remove and strain the berries before they broke down too much. My syrup was perfect.

In a medium saucepan, combine 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water. Heat over medium heat, stirring until sugar is mostly dissolved. Add 1 cup rinsed cranberries, 2 pieces cinnamon stick and 1 rounded teaspoon pink peppercorns. Bring to a slight boil, and then reduce heat to low and allow it to simmer until the cranberries begin to pop and the syrup takes on a pinkish-red color. Remove from heat and let the berries steep for a few minutes before straining into a jar.

Use the cooked cranberries in another recipe if you wish or discard them.

Smoked Maple CranhattanCheers!

Les’s Cranberry Sauce with Mandarin Oranges

3 Comments November 24, 2021 les gura

In the 35 years I’ve been cooking Thanksgiving dinners, one of my favorite things to make is cranberry sauce. Although I have the same fondness for the jelled cranberry of Ocean Spray fame that we all grew up with (you know, the kind you used the can opener on one end and punched two holes in the other end and secretly thrilled to the sucking sound as it plopped out onto a plate), I instinctively knew early on that there had to be a better way.

Initially I began to make fresh cranberry sauce by boiling the berries in water and adding sugar. I wanted more flavor, and in 2002, I hit the jackpot with a website recipe that adapted a version originally published in Cooking Light magazine. That means my batch for Thanksgiving 2021 will be the 20^th year I’ve made this delicious concoction.

It’s about sugar and apple cider (instead of water) offsetting the tart of the cranberries, and mandarin oranges adding back a different type of tart. If you make it, I guarantee you’ll be hooked. Terrie even loves it on vanilla ice cream.

Ingredients

12-ounce bag of fresh cranberries

1 cup of white sugar* (see notes)

½ cup of brown sugar

1 cup of apple cider*

½ jar of mandarin oranges*

*Notes

The original recipe called for 1½ cups of white sugar and ½ of brown sugar. I cut down the white sugar because it is plenty sweet. Either light or dark brown sugar works well.

Although I do typically use apple cider, the recipe certainly would work with water. Better yet if you can find it, as I’ve only been able to do a couple of times over the years, apple-cherry cider is the bomb!

I used half of a 23.5 ounce jar of Dole mandarin oranges; I like jars better because I feel that canned oranges have a “tell” of can flavor (coincidentally, not unlike Ocean Spray jellied cranberry sauce).

Instructions

The recipe begins simple enough, with only cranberries, cider and sugar in the pot.
Use fresh cider from the produce department for best results.
After a few minutes of simmering, the berries will begin to pop.
When the sauce is darker and thickened, remove from heat and cool. Refrigerate for about an hour.
After chilling, the sauce will be more jelly-like. Stir in the Mandarin oranges.
The big chunks of Mandarin orange make a very pleasant tart contrast to the sweetened cranberries. Your guests will love it!

Combine all ingredients, except Mandarin oranges, in a medium saucepan on medium heat and bring to a simmering boil over the course of 15 to 20 minutes. Turn down heat as cranberries begin to pop and work a spoon around the outside of the pot, crushing them into a sauce. When all berries have popped, remove from heat and refrigerate for an hour. Then, add the mandarin oranges to the slightly gelled sauce and refrigerate again until ready to serve.

Cranberry Sauce with Mandarin OrangesPrint it!

Cranberry Sauce with Jalapeno and Orange

4 Comments November 17, 2020 terrie gura

After much hemming and hawing, the verdict is in at our house—we are going big for Thanksgiving. No, I do not mean big in the gathering sense, because that is out of the question during a pandemic. It will only be the two of us, so our “big” means bold, less-than-traditional flavors. This departure from the usual has been my fantasy for several years, but other people get pretty attached to classic, traditional flavors and it almost feels cruel to spring big changes on friends and loved ones who have been building anticipation for the flavors they’ve come to expect at Thanksgiving.

As much as my husband, Les, and I also enjoy our own traditions (including taking turns with the preparation of the turkey—a pact we made when we got engaged), we are changing things up significantly this year, partly because we can do so without disappointing anyone, but also because it feels adventurous and fun in a year that has been pretty hum-drum. It’s Les’s year for the turkey, but rather than his usual brined, stuffed and basted 20-plus pounder, he has decided to do a dry spice rub and prepare our smaller turkey in his new charcoal smoker. And with these bold flavors on the bird, we are planning to keep pace with our sides and accoutrements, including the cranberry sauce.

Most years, we make everyone at the table happy with two different styles of homemade cranberry sauce. Les makes one that is sweetened with both brown and white sugars, simmered in apple cider, and accented with sections of mandarin orange. It’s slightly tangy, but mostly sweet, and more on the “saucy” side. I usually ask him to make extra so we have plenty left over to use as topping on vanilla ice cream. Yum. My version of cranberry sauce leans to the chunky, tart side, usually with spices such as cinnamon, clove and cardamom, and simmered in dry red wine. It is a decidedly “grownup” cranberry sauce, and stands in contrast to so much of the richness happening on the traditional table.

This year, however, we will have only this one cranberry sauce—bearing the bright and bold flavors of orange and jalapeno. Now, you may cringe at the suggestion of jalapeno, worried that it will be too intense, but let me assure you it’s a fantastic twist, a pleasant undertone that stands up to the bright citrus and tart cranberry, but does not overwhelm.

All three flavors are evident in this lively, festive sauce.

If you’ve never made your own cranberry sauce before, please let me show you how simple it is. All you need for this recipe is a large saucepan, a bag of cranberries, a large orange, a large fresh jalapeno and a cup of sugar. You can move this to the “done” column in less than half an hour, and it’ll keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks (that is, if you are disciplined to not eat it straight from the fridge with a spoon). Let’s do this!

Made from scratch doesn’t seem so difficult, right?

Ingredients

12 oz. bag fresh cranberries, rinsed and sorted for “losers”* (see notes)

1 cup real cane sugar (or slightly less if you prefer more tang)

1 large fresh organic orange*, washed

1 large fresh jalapeno pepper, seeds removed and minced*

A stingy pinch of kosher salt

A few twists of freshly ground coarse black pepper

*Notes

Rinse the cranberries in a wide colander that allows you to inspect the quality of the berries. Discard any that are dried up, soft or otherwise questionable. Even with a brand-new bag of cranberries, I usually find about a dozen losers that don’t make the cut.

Organic orange is best here because we will be eating the peel, and pesticides are neither tasty nor safe to ingest. Whether you use organic or conventional, be sure you wash the orange well before stripping the peel.

If you are nervous about handling the raw jalapeno, feel free to slip on some rubber kitchen gloves for this part of the recipe, then carefully peel them off and into the trash once done. I can’t work well with gloves, so here’s my advice: the sooner you clear the irritating jalapeno oils from your skin, the less likely you are to accidentally touch your eyes, nose or lips and get a painful reminder of the intensity of the capsaicin oils. But if you wash with water right away, you risk spreading the oils around rather than breaking them down. Here’s a simple way to stop the burn before it begins—Dawn dish liquid. Yep, the same blue stuff they use in the TV ads to save the baby birds from oil spills. Any good dish liquid would probably do it, but Dawn is what I use. Gently rub the dish soap, full-strength, straight onto your dry hands, covering every part that may have touched the raw pepper, and give it a few seconds to begin dissolving the pepper oils. Be sure to rub the dish liquid under your nails and between your fingers. Then, wash and rinse your hands and the knife you used to cut the pepper.

It may seem odd to add any amount of salt and pepper, but remember that salt is an enhancer that punches up whatever flavors are in your dish. As for the pepper, it’s an easy way to add an extra little “bite” to underscore the surprising flavor of jalapeno. You will not taste black pepper. Trust me, it works.

Berries, sugar, orange, jalapeno and just a few twists of fresh black pepper. This is such an easy thing to make.

Instructions

Real cane sugar is not highly processed, so it has a warmer color than white sugar.
My favorite garnishing tool is very useful for stripping the right part of the citrus zest.
A potato peeler works also, but be sure you only peel the bright orange part. Leave the bitter white pith out of the mix.
So much of jalapeno heat is in the seeds and membranes, but we are removing those, keeping bold flavor without the burn!
Do yourself a favor and wash the hot pepper oils off your hands before you proceed. Dawn liquid is my secret weapon for dissolving the irritating oils. See the notes section for tips.
I could only squeeze so much of the juice by hand.
My citrus reamer helped me extract every last drop of fresh juice!
Ooh, these vibrant colors make me happy! Stir to combine then start cooking.
As the mixture boils, you’ll see some foaming and you’ll hear the berries begin to pop.
The berries should smash easily when pressed with a spoon.
The sauce is thickened after 20 minutes cooking, and will continue to thicken as it cools.
This bright and zesty sauce will hold its own next to our spicy, smoked turkey!

The essence of orange is front and center, giving this cranberry sauce a bright and festive freshness, and the jalapeno is evident but not at all “hot.” It’s going to be a nice complement to the smoky flavors Les will be infusing into our turkey, but I’ll probably sneak into the fridge with my spoon for a few more taste tests (just to be sure) between now and Thanksgiving. And don’t be surprised if I find a way to use the leftovers in a post-holiday appetizer or something. As you all know, I cannot leave well enough alone. 😊

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