Turkey Day challenge: bourbon cranberry sauce
Thursday, November 08, 2007
My husband really likes canned cranberry sauce. He won’t eat any cranberry related concoction unless it has tin can grooves in it and the expiration date is visible. Growing up, we always had the canned stuff, too. But the second I had fresh cranberry sauce I gave up the ways of the pre-packaged cranberry gel. My husband, well...I’m still trying to drag him kicking and screaming to the light.
Last year for Thanksgiving I made a cranberry sauce I was sure he would love: bourbon cranberry sauce. In the end, my husband refused to even try my cranberry sauce, but I made a convert out of his father. Go figure.
The sauce is easy to make and stores really well, either canned in a water bath or in the fridge for a few days:
1 lb. cranberries
2 c. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 c. bourbonMix the cranberries, cinnamon, and sugar together and bake, covered in foil, for one hour at 350 degrees. Remove from oven and give it all a good stir; pour in the bourbon. Refrigerate overnight and serve chilled.
The Fair Food Farmstand has both white and red heirloom cranberry varieties from Paradise Hill Farm this week. I can vouch for both of these - they are absolutely delicious, and the bourbon gives the sauce a little bit of zing. It’s still the tiniest bit alcoholic, though, so be sure not to operate any heavy machinery after Thanksgiving dinner!
After reading this post, I purchased cranberries at the Headhouse Market yesterday and made this today. It is absolutely delicious. Thanks for giving me a use for fresh cranberries.
Any idea of the limit of “a few days” for storage? Or what volume of sauce you get per pound of cranberries?
My husband is the same way, old Southern family. Coming from Europe, I rarely had cranerry sauce, but started making it from scratch as soon as I heard about it. You should have seen the look on his face when I told him that if he wanted canned he had to go to Mama’s house!! Great recipe!