Cranberry Sauce and Fresh Cranberry Relish

Cranberries alone are quite healthy--lots of vitamin C and only 7 carbohydrates for a half-cup. But the recipes call for 1 cup sugar for every 2 cups cranberries, which is a lot. I found with the natural sweeteners I could use 1/4 cup sweetener to every 2 cups cranberries and it was plenty sweet. But you can always use more or less sweetener to taste.

I made cooked whole-berry cranberry sauce and a raw cranberry relish and tested ten natural sweeteners. I'll give you the basic recipes first, then the results of my taste test and, finally, some tips on how to make your cranberry sauce unique and extra special.

makes 2 1/2 cups

COOKED WHOLE-BERRY CRANBERRY SAUCE

3 cups fresh cranberries (1 standard 12-ounce package)
1 1/2 cups boiling water
3/8 cup sweetener

1. Wash and pick over the cranberries. Discard stems and soft berries.
2. Place the cranberries in a saucepan.
3. Cover with boiling water and turn the stove on to high heat.
4. When the water begins to boil, continue to boil for a few minutes until all the berries have burst open.
5. Turn off heat and stir with a wooden spoon, mashing some of the berries against the side of the pot until most of the berries are broken. It will be like a thin applesauce.
6. Add sweetener to warm cranberries and stir to dissolve. If you have trouble dissolving the sweetener, reheat to boiling, stirring constantly.
7. Allow sauce to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until cool. Sauce will set up as it cools.

FRESH RAW CRANBERRY RELISH

3 cups fresh cranberries (1 standard 12-ounce package)
3/8 cup sweetener (except stevia)

1. Wash and pick over the cranberries. Discard stems and soft berries.
2. Chop cranberries in a blender or food processor. Do not puree.
3. Add sweetener and any other ingredients and mix well.
4. Cover and chill in the refrigerator overnight to allow juices to blend with the sweetener and flavors to blend.

THE SWEETENERS

I tried ten sweeteners in both the cooked sauce and the raw relish. I've listed them here alphabetically, as I know each of you will be choosing different sweeteners for different reasons. I love doing these tests, because they really show that the flavors and characteristics of the different sweeteners are really suited for different purposes. Some of the flavors of the sweeteners just really didn't go with cranberries at all!

All the sweeteners blended well with the cranberries after they were left to sit for a few hours.

• agave nectar: Very good - a personal favorite.
• barley malt syrup: Flavor of barley malt is overpowering - not recommended.
• brown rice syrup: Flavor does not go well with cranberries - not recommended.
• date sugar: Very good.
• unrefined cane sugar (such as Sucanat or Rapadura): Very good.
• fruit spreads (fruit juice sweetened): This was very very good! I used marmalade and it added both sweetness and a nice orange flavor. I would also try raspberry or strawberry.
• honey: Very good, though results will vary depending on the type of honey used. I suggest a light honey such as wildflower, tupelo, or especially orange blossom.
• maple syrup: Another personal favorite. Since both cranberries and maple syrup grow in the Northeast, I'm not surprised they go together so well.

ADDITIONS

My cranberry sauce ends up being different every year because there are so many good things that go so well with cranberries!

Spices & Flavorings

Try adding cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, or vanilla. These can be added during or after cooking.

Also rosemary, black pepper, and balsamic vinegar go well with cranberries, but are more savory.

Fruits

Add to cooked sauce during or after cooking, and to raw relish. These fruit go exceptionally well with cranberries: orange (fruit, juice and zest), tangerines, apples, raspberries, pears, stawberries, cherries, raisins.

Nuts

Add chopped, toasted nuts at the end. Walnuts and pecans are the most popular.

Liquor

This can be added as a flavoring at the end, or used in cooking. My personal favorite is to use ruby port for half of the cooking water. A bit of Grand Mariner gives a nice orange flavor, and brandy is good, too.

CRANBERRY SAUCE WITH ORANGE MARMALADE

Make the Cooked Whole Cranberry Sauce, using 3/4 cup fruit-sweetened orange marmalade for the sweetener. The sauce is sweet with bits of tart orange peel. Simple and delicious!

APPLE-ORANGE-CRANBERRY RELISH

This was inspired by a relish sold at the cooking store Williams-Sonoma. After tasting the free sample, I came home and made it without sugar. It's sweetened only with fruits and is wonderfully fragrant with holiday spices.

makes 3 cups relish

2 apples, peeled and finely chopped
3/4 cup fruit-sweetened orange marmalade
3 cups (1 12-ounce bag) fresh cranberries
1 1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves

1. Wash and pick over the cranberries. Discard stems and soft berries.
2. Place the cranberries in a saucepan.
3. Cover with boiling water and turn the stove on to high heat.
4. After starting the cranberries, add the other ingredients right away, and continue to cook until both cranberries and apples are soft. Mash the mixture a bit with the back of a wooden spoon to break up some of the fruits, but still leave it chunky.
5. Allow sauce to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until cool. Sauce will set up as it cools.

FRUIT-SWEETENED RAW CRANBERRY RELISH

This was sent in by a reader, who makes it for the staff and students at a school every Thanksgiving. They all love it!

1 pound raw cranberries
4 apples
4 oranges

1. Wash cranberries, take out any bad ones.
2. Core the apples, you do not need to peel them.
3. Peel 3 of the oranges and cut up. Take out any seeds.
4. Cut up the last orange, leave the peeling on.
5. Put the above in a food grinder or food processor. I use an old fashioned hand grinder.
6. If you like it sweeter add more oranges or apples.
7. Let it sit over night.

from a reader...

Combine chopped fresh cranberries with chopped ripe pear, chopped apple, and raw honey.

DEBRA'S RAW CRANBERRY RELISH 2005

This raw relish was enjoyed by all at Thanksgiving. It happened to be placed on the table during the salad course. I had brought a salad of romaine and red leaf lettuce, with cucumbers, mild blue cheese, green onions, and a dressing of olive oil, organic apple cider vinegar, a bit of balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper. The relish accidentally ended up on the same forkfull with the salad and after I exclaimed it's deliciousness, everyone added it to their salad. Really yummy!

1 package (12 ounces) fresh cranberries, coarsely chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped fine
2-3 tablespoons red onion, finely chopped
raisins to taste
raw honey to taste
1/2 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped

Mix all ingredients, except the walnuts, and chill several hours to blend flavors.

Add walnuts and mix just before serving.