This is a fresh and simple alternative to the cooked (or canned) cranberry sauce that usually shows up at your Thanksgiving feast. The addition of fresh orange juice and zest means that you don’t need to add a whole lot of sugar to achieve a perfect sweet-tart flavor balance. Traditional cooked sauces call for a cup of sugar; this recipe uses just a couple of tablespoons of honey.
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- 12 ounces fresh cranberries, rinsed and dried
- 2 medium navel oranges, zested and juiced
- pinch of salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2-3 tablespoons raw honey
- Add the cranberries, orange juice, half of the orange zest, salt, vanilla, and honey to the bowl of your food processor. Pulse until you have reached the texture of a slightly chunky sauce. Spoon into a serving bowl and chill until ready to serve. Garnish with the remaining orange zest before serving.
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It really doesn’t get much easier than this. You can do this with frozen cranberries if that is all you have on hand. The taste will still be great but it will produce more juice than the fresh berries. I whip up this relish all winter long and use it as a condiment for meats, a stir-in for greek yogurt, or just as a snack in a bowl. I often top it with toasted pecans or walnuts for some protein and crunch.
I have been teaching an overload this semester so quick-and-easy recipes have been my go to solutions. I was also looking for some gluten free, no-refrigeration-needed lunch options to get through the term. Wild Garden contacted me about their new Snack Boxes to Go, which come in a variety of gluten free options, all of which are handy and shelf-stable. They sent me several kinds to try, and my favorite so far is the Roasted Garlic Hummus with Multi-Seed Crackers:
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I’m also a fan of the Garlic Hummus with Sea Salt Quinoa chips. Disclosure: I received free samples from Wild Garden to provide my honest opinion, but was not compensated in any other way. All opinions are my own and are genuine.
We are putting together a small feast this Thanksgiving, with a local, organic turkey that I plan to brine, plus this cranberry-orange relish, my real-food green bean casserole, and a pumpkin flan. What’s your holiday plan?
Thanks for reading,
-Angela
