Last Wednesday I took a Very Merry Cranberry cooking class with friends/coworkers Maija and Brooke. We figured it would be perfect to have a few new, seasonally-appropriate recipes going into the holidays. The class was a lot of fun and best of all, you get to sample all the food throughout the class. And these classes are reasonably priced, this one was only $28 and ran an hour and a half.
Recipes at the end of the post.
These mock cosmopolitans were made with 100% cranberry juice and were a little too tart for my taste. I will probably add some symple syrup (equal parts water and sugar and boil until the sugar melts) when I make these. They are a perfect cocktail (or mocktail) for any upcoming holiday party.
Making cranberry sauce is so much easier than I thought. I always think of my sister, Kat, when I think of cranberries. She is the only one at Thanksgiving that really cares about cranberry sauce and loves it, even right out of the can. I will definitely make this homemade sauce for her next year.
Now for the recipes (recipe credits to Whole Foods and Ani Loizzo):
Ingredients
4 cups cranberry juice
2 cups club soda
Squeeze of fresh lime juice (1 lime per four cosmos)
Ice
Reserved lime peal, for garnish
Directions
Add cranberry juice to a pitcher and squeeze in the juice of one lime (remove peal first with a vegetable peeler). Top with club soda and stir. Pour into glasses filled with ice and garnish with lime peel. Serves 4.
Note, I would add vodka to the mix here!!! Set a bottle of vodka next to the pitcher and let people fill their own, to taste.
Whole berry cranberry sauce
Ingredients
1 pound cranberries, about 4 cups
¼ cups EACH orange juice, water and sugar
Directions
Bring all ingredients to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer 10-15 minutes. Either serve whole, mash and serve chunky or blend until smooth. Makes about 3 cups. Freeze leftover portions up to six months.
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Spinach salad with gorgonzola and cranberry vinaigrette
Ingredients
¼ cup each cranberries and balsamic vinegar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon each sugar, Dijon mustard and chopped onion
12 cups baby spinach
4 slices pumpernickel bread, cubed and toasted
1 cup each gorgonzola, toasted walnuts, and dried cranberries (we used dried cranberries sweetened with apple juice)
Directions
In a food processor, combine cranberries, vinegar, sugar, Dijon mustard and onion and pulse to puree. Slowly drizzle in oil until it forms a smooth emulsion. Add dressing to the bottom of a large mixing bowl and add dried cranberries and walnuts. Toss to coat. Serve topped with gorgonzola. Serves 6-8.
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Cranberry scones
Ingredients
1 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling
2 tablespoons lemon juice, divided
3 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
Zest of two lemons
1 teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups (3 sticks) chilled butter, diced
1 cup dried cranberries
½ - 1 cup half and half
Direction
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and lemon zest. Add in chilled butter and mash with your fingertips to form a mixture that looks like bread crumbs. Mix in cranberries. Add 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice, then add half and half until a soft dough forms. Divide dough in half. Pat each half into a six inch disk and cut into wedges with a pizza cutter. Arrange on a cookie sheet and brush with remaining lemon juice. Sprinkle with sugar and bake 18 minutes or until nicely browned. Makes 12 scones.
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