Thanksgiving Cranberries
Some vegetarian Thanksgiving recipes bring back warm memories. This cranberry recipe always reminds me of the time my grandmother and my mom showed up to Thanksgiving with competing (nearly identical) cranberry recipes. Each one still swears that hers is the better recipe!
Prep time: 20;Total time: A few hours
Ingredients
- 2 oranges
- Water
- 3/4 c. maple syrup
- 12 oz. cranberries (fresh or frozen)
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/4 c. Cointreau
Zest the 2 oranges with a microplane and set aside the zest. Juice both oranges and add enough water (if necessary) to make the liquid equal 3/4 cup. Boil orange juice and water together in a saucepan with maple syrup for 5 minutes. Add the cranberries and cook for about 6 minutes. Add orange zest, lemon juice, and Cointreau. Then cool it down, cover and chill in the fridge, and enjoy it cold!
Tips
The cardinal rule of making cranberries is watch them. Keep a constant eye on your
cranberries while they cook and lower the heat if they look like they are going to boil over and
make a mess on your stove.
Try adding 1/4 tsp to 1/2 tsp of spices like cinnamon and allspice.
If you do not have Cointreau on hand, try a different liqueur like Chambord, Limoncello, or Triple Sec.
Most of the world's cranberries are grown in: Wisconsin, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and Quebec. If you live in a cranberry-harvesting state (or province), see if you can find locally grown cranberries and locally harvested maple syrup to use in this and other vegetarian holiday recipes.
I have memories of fighting with a cheese grater to grate the orange peel for the Thanksgiving cranberries as a kid. It did not seem like a very simple vegetarian recipe! Do yourself a favor and get a microplane to grate the orange peel. Citrus zest is incredibly healthy, so if you get a microplane you can use it to grate citrus peel into lemonade, muffins, and all sorts of recipes!
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