Thankful for Cranberries

This is a true story about my Nanna and my cranberrry chutney. Not together but the threads tie it up like a trussed turkey.

My Nanna was a character. Most of my memories focus around her being a petite blind feisty senior matriarch. But my cousins, the much older ones, remember other aspects of her. The following story most likely came from them.

My grandparents were devout regular church goers but perhaps my Nanna’s mind occasionally wandered. One day she shrieked out loud, in the middle of the sermon, “my pie” and got up abruptly and left the church to go home and take the pie out of the oven. She regularly discovered tbe salad in the fridge when she went to serve dessert. So perhaps the following highlights a genetic predisposition?

Thanksgiving dinner was hosted by our daughter and son in law. No I didn’t need to bring anything but just to come early and help with set up. 

She set the menu and cranberries in any description would have no role in her 100% homegrown meal.

Despite this I made cranberrry chutney. It’s so flipping good. Onions and garlic marry with the raisins and cranberries, the jalapeño bringing a hidden heat while the cloves and nutmeg amp it into Thanksgiving mode. I took a bottle over after taste testing it a bit repeatedly. I set it on the island counter. And there it sat. Sadly forgotten in the wonderous meal of home grown, freshly slaughtered and instantly brined and then slowly smoked. The meat was absolutely the star of the show but the carrots and beets played a great second fiddle with the slightly sweet slightly smoky flavour. My perennial  favourite though is my daughter’s mashed potatoes with Boirsin cheese and butter. The gravy was wonderful over a perfectly cooked stuffing, aka dressing, depending on where you hail from. Of course we had to save room for a beautiful apple pie and pumpkin pie with whipped cream (which was the only item that she did not procure from her back yard).  The food was so delicious and appealing no one thought to ask if there was cranberries.

Much later on in the evening my son-in-law discovered the cranberry chutney on the island.  A small amount of turkey came home with us but no dressing aka stuffing.  So for my turkey cranberry chutney sandwich today I fried up some onion with sage and poultry seasoning. Seriously delicious. Could have added some fresh sage leaves but I just thought of that now.

So that’s what was on my plate this Thanksgiving weekend. Along with much thankfulness for celebrating together in person, for blog readers and for summer weather in the fall. Plus a whole long list of other things.

Thanks to Donna and Deb for hosting what’s on your plate bug blog challenge. It’s such a fun easy one to participate it.

Bernie

Reciepe as follows for those who asked:

Cranberry Chutney

• 3 c cranberries (+/- whatevers in the bag)
• 1 c water & 1 c vinegar
• 1/4 c lemon juice
• 3/4 c white sugar
• 3/4 c brown sugar
• 1/2 med onion chopped
• 2 – 3 cloves garlic
• 1 jalapeño
• 1 c raisins
• 5 cloves
• 2 tsp salt
• Grated nutmeg or a tsp (ish)
• Grated ginger or a tsp (ish)

Combine and simmer (lid half on/half off) x 30 – 40 mins. Stirring occasionally and tasting often!!😏🤫 Freezes well to keep between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Also good with turkey pot pie. Trust me you also want that recipe!

There you have it folks. Modified from a 1995 October Canadian Living recipe. Mostly less sugar and a jalapeño versus 1/2 tsp dried chilies. Can also be cut in half.

BC